Past And Present Together
by Shattered Aura
Summary: Tulsa, Oklahoma, 1966. Ponyboy Curtis, his brothers and his friends are living a normal life. Edmundston, New-Brunswick, 2014. Julie LaPointe is experimenting on her time machine, wanting to discover her future. What happpens when something goes terribly wrong, and she is sent 48 years in the past, in an unknown town to her, known to 7 Greaser boys? (Johnny and Dallas are alive)
1. Introduction

**Hey guys!**

**For those of you who are reading my other fanfic The Super Sonic Bros., some of you have probably seen my last chapter, which is an Author's Note. On that note, I have explained that I currently am having Writer's Block, but I also explain about The Outsiders, and the idea that I had about writting a fic. Today I will start writting this fic; hopefully I will also get back more inspiration to keep updating the Sonic fic. Don't worry, I won't leave it un-updated, I will keep writting it, but in the meantime, I want to keep busy with writting this one here. I hope you'll enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of The Outsiders characters, but I do own Julie LaPointe, which is actually me, except I chose my second name instead of my first one. Her personnality will be the same as mine, and some elements in the story will be true.**

**Hopefully you will not think of Ponyboy and the other characters as being OOC in my fic.**

* * *

_Prologue_

Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA, 1966. Ponyboy Curtis just got home from school with his friends Two-Bit (Keith) Mathews and Johnny Cade.

"You know the gig, guys", said Ponyboy, "you can do whatever you want, so long as you don't trash the house, which I doubt Johnny would do, but Two-Bit? I have my suspicions." joked Ponyboy, smirking.

"Ha ha ha, nice one, kid." replied Two-Bit sarcastically, but smirking too. The three boys then heard the door bust open and saw Sodapop Curtis coming inside the house, followed by his buddy Steve Randal.

"Hey guys, hey Pone!" cheerfully called Sodapop to the boys.

"Hey Soda", replied Ponyboy, "I thought you were at work."

"Nah, I got there and Soda was walking out the door and motioned me to follow him", explained Steve, "which reminds me, why?" he asked his best friend.

"Oh, right, well, Boss let us take the night off. Seems two of our coworkers had messed up and got Boss mad, so he called 'em to work and gave us a free night for our good work 'n business", explained Sodapop," Ain't that just thrilling, Stevie?" Sodapop called in a higher voice, which made Steve grin. You just couldn't stay serious with Sodapop around. Just then, Dallas (Dally) Winston came in the house.

"Hey y'all." Dallas called to the gang. Johnny was the first one to reply.

"Hey Dally, where were you?" the small black-haired Greaser asked.

"Oh, y'know, just chillin'. Came back from Buck's. Almost got jumped by Socs. Those bastards." Dallas muttered to himself. Johnny looked worried.

"They didn't follow you here, did they?" asked Johnny. Dallas was surprised of Johnny. He normally didn't speak much. Dallas shrugged.

"Nah, they wouldn't have the guts to follow me here. They know Superman lives here." the though Greaser replied, talking about Ponyboy and Sodapop's brother.

"Good, 'cause I don't want 'em here." Sodapop claimed, and the gang nodded. Nobody wanted them in their territory, the East-Side of town. Just then, the door opened and in came Darrel (Darry) Curtis, Ponyboy and Sodapop's older brother and legal guardian.

"Someone mentioned my name?" Darry asked, his face looking tired yet relieved.

"Hey Superdope!" called Two-Bit to Darry, which earned him a glare from the older Curtis, but he ignored it.

"Hey Dar, nah, nobody mentioned your name." answered Sodapop, instantly noticing his older brother's tired face. "You look tired, Dar. Tuff day?" claimed Sodapop. Darry nodded.

"Yeah, we had to roof one heck of a house in the West-Side of town, right in the middle of it. Luckily no one dared me. I swear I would've «accidently» dropped a tool on a Soc's head if one was to criticize my work after that day." he claimed. Two-Bit laughed.

"I swear, Superman, your sense of humor is getting good, but not as good as your muscles show. Keep workin' though." Two-Bit claimed. Ponyboy howled with laugher. If there was one thing he thought was funny, it was seeing his oldest brother getting teased by Two-Bit or Sodapop, or even Steve.

"Oh, yeah? You think it's funny, do yah, Pone." said Darry, walking toward his youngest brother in a slow pace and dangerous face. Of course he was faking being mad, but his youngest brother didn't know. Ponyboy instantly backed away on the couch, scared of what his eldest brother would do. Sodapop noticed instantly.

"Dar..." he warned, but Darry made a gesture with his hand, telling him to shut up while never getting his eyes off Ponyboy. Then, without warning, he tackled his little brother and started tickling him. Ponyboy's expression had soon changed from worried to pleading to let him go as he let out a yelp of surprise.

"N-No, s-stop it Dar, stop!" he shrieked with laugher, but Darry didn't budge. Instead, Sodapop joined the tickle fight and helped Darry tickle his younger brother, grinning. The others watched, funny looks on their faces. By now, Pony's face was red with laughter and he could barely breathe.

"Say Uncle, Pone!" shouted Sodapop, laughing too. Pony shook his head and kept laughing his head off. Darry then picked Ponyboy and held him so Sodapop could tickle him without Ponyboy debating to get free, which he wouldn't be able to, since Darry's grip was firm. Ponyboy was pleading and laughing, and by now he was close to losing his breath.

"S-s-stop i-it!" he shrieked, and finally Sodapop stopped and Darry put him back on the couch. Ponyboy slowly caught back his breath and grinned at his brothers. Then, without warning, he tackled Darry, and both brothers were fighting another tickle fight on the ground. Everyone was laughing and one by one, the boys joined, this time helping Ponyboy tickle Darry.

It was a fun day for the gang. They didn't have a care in the world.

However, they had a surprise coming...

* * *

Edmundston, New-Brunswick, Canada, 2014. Julie LaPointe just got home from school, too, and it was close to dinner time.

"Hey mom." she called to her mother, which she knew would be in the computer room in the house.

"Hello Julie." her mother called back. Julie looked outside and saw her two dogs, Cookie and Bailey. She opened the door and un-hooked them from the ropes attached to their collars and stepped away to let them in. She closed the door and sighed. Another day had passed at school without anything interesting, and she was glad to be home. School days were long for her since she had to get up at 6 o'clock in the morning and came back at 4:45 in the afternoon. _I hate the bus_, she thought, _the ride is way too long and I`m usually the last one to hop off_. She gave food to the dogs and headed downstairs, her cat following her. **(Note: his name is a French one; Tigris, which means Little-Grey in English and makes no sense, so I`ll call him Tigris, but don`t get confused, ok?) **He meowed, pleased to see her. _I swear_, she thought again, _that cat never leaves me alone. I thought cats were independent, but this one always needs to be petted_.

She plopped on her bed, thinking to herself. Her secret project was almost done. She only needed to type a couple of things on the screen and then it would work.

Her «secret project» was a time machine she had built with the help of her step-father, Robert, since he was an electrician. He knew that soon, she would travel to the future; she wanted to see what her future would be. Would she be a journalist like she wanted to, or will she be a world-known writer like one of her dreams was, or would she be the complete opposite? She wanted answers; she was impatient.

Her mother also knew about the project since she warned her mother she would be gone for a week or two, and she had told her friends about her absence, but not the reason why. She wanted to surprise them.

She walked to other door in her temporary bedroom (her usual bedroom being painted and having a complete makeover) and opened it. She closed it behind her, not wanting to be disturbed. She had brought a bag with her, containing clothes for a week, her hygiene kit (which consisted of her tooth-brush and tooth-paste, her hair-brush, elastics for her hair and her deodorant) her I-Pod (for music only), her drawing pad (for drawing, of course), her Kobo tablet (a tablet for reading books only), her water bottle (she had no idea what to expect of the trip) and her camera (for pictures or films, if she wanted to). She felt more than ready to leave. She wrote a small note saying that she would now be gone for a week or two and she left the note on her bed. She knew that Robert would see it when he came back from work since he always went past her room to get wood for the fire-place. With confidence, she pin-pointed the location and date of where we wanted to go and what year it would be. She decided for her own town, Edmundston, and typed: 2028, which was 30 years from when she was born, and 15 years from now.

Unbeknownst to her, she had left her water bottle next to the machine, slightly opened, and when she turned around, she swatted it on the machine. The machine started making weird sounds which got louder and louder, until finally, it disappeared, taking Julie with it.

On the other side of the door, Tigris meowed, curious of what had made the sounds.


	2. Chapter 1: A Shocking Discovery

**Hey guys! Just a little note before reading this chapter: I do hope you liked the introduction! It came from a wacky idea I had after dreaming the same thing! Yes, I have odd dreams, and I dreamed about myself, building a time machine, and getting sent into Tulsa, 1966. Weird, uh? I came with the idea of writting a fic about it, so I do hope you like! Please, R & R, and enjoy!**

**P.-s.: By the way, I was wondering; is the title of this fanfic good? Let me know if it's good enough for you guys, or let me know if you have any suggestions or ideas!**

* * *

Ponyboy was on the couch talking with Johnny and Dallas. Sodapop, Steve and Two-Bit were playing a poker game. Meanwhile, Darry had gone to take a shower. He was taking a break from all that laughing that happened a little earlier. He had never laughed like this, and he was glad he wasn't actually getting treated like a responsible guardian, but like everybody's older brother, a fun guy who always played and laughed with them and that didn't grow up fast.

Darry sighed, thinking of all the growing up he had to do in order to keep Ponyboy and Sodapop with him. However, he didn't regret the decision he had taken when he was given the chance to send his brothers to a boys' home; he would never, ever abandon his brothers. They were his only family left, excluding Two-Bit, Steve, Johnny and Dallas, who were just as much as family to the three brothers.

Speaking of the four boys, Darry, Sodapop and Ponyboy were considered family to them, too. Steve's dad was mean to him; he would get drunk and sometimes kick Steve out of the house. Johnny's parents were always fighting, and if they weren't fighting each other, they would hurt Johnny. Dallas had lived in New York and became cold ever since. He moved to Tulsa, alone, without his father, who didn't care about him anyway. Two-Bit's mother did care for him and the rest of the boys for that matter, but Two-Bit felt he needed to be there for the Curtis brothers, to cheer them up since he was known to be the wise-cracker of the gang. His mother helped as much as she could. She was a good friend to Mr. and Mrs. Curtis, and she was torn when they died and when her husband left years ago.

Darry got out of the shower and dressed up, lost in thoughts. Suddenly, he got an idea. Why couldn't he have fun with his brothers and the gang tonight? After all, Sodapop and Steve weren't working, it was Friday, Ponyboy had nothing to do, Two-Bit, Dallas and Johnny either. He could bring the gang somewhere, to the lot to play football, or he could ask Sodapop to bring them all to drag races. He eagerly prepared, putting a little bit of grease in his hair and dressing up with his rumble black T-shirt and his usual jeans.

He stepped out of the bathroom and headed toward the kitchen to make dinner, only to find a blue spaghetti casserole already cooked. Sodapop was standing next to it, grinning, proud of his weird yet usual cooking. Darry chuckled to himself as he took a plate, thanked Sodapop for cooking and sat in his recliner to eat it. The others took that as a signal as they jumped toward the spaghetti casserole like a pack of hungry wolves chasing their pray. Darry rolled his eyes and focused on the newspaper while eating. One by one, the guys came back in the living room, each holding a plate of blue spaghetti and eating it. Ponyboy sat on the couch between Johnny and Sodapop, while Steve and Two-Bit sat on the floor. Dallas wasn't hungry, and he sure wasn't a fan of Sodapop's cooking, even though it did taste good. Suddenly, he spoke.

-"Hey guys, I'm gonna go to Buck's tonight, any of you wanna join?" he asked.

-"Well, I was meaning to talk to you guys. Since tonight we all have nothing to do, I was wondering if you would like to play football at the lot, or just hang out." Darry explained. Dallas shrugged.

-"I'm still gonna go to Buck's. If anything, you'll know where to find me. See y'all." Dallas said as he headed off and waved at the gang. The boys waved back. Sodapop turned back at Darry.

-"You serious, Dar? I mean, we haven't played football for a while after...you know, and I thought your shoulder was sore from all that roofing bundle you carried." the middle brother explained. Darry shook his head.

-"Nah, it's fine. Plus, like you said, we haven't played football in a while, and I think it's high time we do. Y'all are free tonight, and I figured since I have free time too, we could have a little fun." Darry replied.

-"Yeah, that would be tuff." claimed Ponyboy, followed by Johnny, who nodded at Ponyboy's statement.

-"Yeah, we could learn to knock you out of the play since you always win." claimed Two-Bit. Darry chuckled as Sodapop and Steve nodded.

-"Yeah, how 'bout we go right now with our usual teams; Darry, Pony an' Johnny against Two-Bit, Steve an' I? An' this time, Dar, we're gonna beat y'all!" claimed Sodapop.

-"That's what you think, pal. Alright, let's get going!" shouted Darry. The guys whooped as they ran out the door, following Darry. Ponyboy was last to get out of the house but, being a fast runner and the fastest of the gang, he easily caught up with Sodapop and Steve, which were right behind Darry. When the six boys got to the lot, Sodapop tackled Ponyboy making him yelp, and both brothers fell on the ground, laughing.

* * *

After two hours of playing football, Darry, Ponyboy and Johnny won.

-"Aw, Dar, your team beat us again!" whined Sodapop in a childish voice.

-"That's 'cause we're pros, Soda." claimed Ponyboy, grinning at both his brothers. Sodapop playfully nudged him on the arm with his elbow, and Ponyboy giggled. Steve muttered something to himself which sounded like «smart-ass», but Ponyboy didn't hear him.

As Ponyboy walked next to his brothers, he spotted something on the ground. It looked like a person. Ponyboy pointed at what he saw and started running and soon, the others followed. When they reached the spot, they gasped at what they saw.

A girl was lying on the floor, unconscious. Next to her, there was an open bag. Some clothes had fallen out of the bag along with a drawing pad and some pencils. Not far from the girl and the bag was a pretty beat up machine, and it looked weird too. As Ponyboy crouched closer to her face, he silently described her.

The girl had hair the same color as his (reddish-brown) and it was the average length. It was straight but messed up; she had probably been lying there for hours and nobody had seen her before them. A pair of blue glasses was on the ground next to her; they had probably fallen off her face when she fell or whatever happened to her. She had a small nose and average sized lips, which were slightly blue; she was most likely to be cold out there. She had freckles where her nose was, and her cheeks were bright red. Her skin was pale, almost white. She had a roundish face, but she wasn't big at all, so that made her cute-looking. She was wearing beautiful clothes; a striped black, gray and purple long-sleeve shirt, and pale blue skinny jeans. She had black boots with a small heel.

As Ponyboy took her hand, he instantly dropped it. Boy, was it cold! She was unconscious, but she hadn't been beat up. She had no scratches or blood anywhere, but she looked pretty out of it, and she might catch a cold or something from possibly lying there for hours.

-"Darry, we gotta do something... We can't leave her here, and we can't bring her to the hospital..." whispered Ponyboy loud enough so Sodapop could hear him.

-"Dar, we should bring her and her stuff home." said Sodapop, helping Ponyboy picking her up. Darry moved and picked her up instead. He put one arm where her knees bent, and the other arm where her back was, and scooped her in his strong arms. She didn't move at all, didn't even twitch.

-"Pony, gather her fallen stuff and put it back in her back. Bring the bag home, too. Steve, Soda, get the broken machine. Maybe it's important to her, and it could be an explanation to why she's here. Two-Bit, run to the house and take out the first-aid kit, just to make sure she has to be treated if we see a scratch on her face, 'cause here, it's too dark to see. Johnny, run with him and call Dally. He needs to know about this." explained Darry. He then headed to his house while the guys did as they were told without question. They were all eager to know where she came from.

Honestly, Ponyboy wanted to meet her, to talk to her, to be her friend. She had seemed about his age, and he figured he could use a friend his age. Even if Johnny was his best friend, he was still 16, while Ponyboy was 14. She was a girl too while all of Pony's friends were boys, but who was he to care if she was a girl or a boy? He quickly gathered her stuff, zipped the back and ran after Darry, bag in hand. Sodapop and Steve were soon to follow, but unlike Ponyboy, they were going at a slow pace, making sure the machine wouldn't break even more.

* * *

When they got to the house, Darry laid the girl on the couch. Two-Bit was in the living room with the first-aid kit on the coffee table next to the couch. Johnny was in the kitchen with Dallas, explaining the situation. Sometimes, Dallas would look in the living room, eye the girl and then listen to Johnny's explanation again.

Finally, after what seemed like hours when it was only a couple of minutes, her fingers twitched and her eyes fluttered open. She slowly sat up and looked around her.

She saw the face of a young boy similar to her in a funny way; he had reddish-brown hair just like hers and greenish-gray eyes. Hers were hazel. Small difference, but close enough. He had a thoughtful expression on his face but he was looking at her carefully. Next to him stood a boy with rusty hair color, gray eyes and sideburns on his face. On the other side of the younger boy stood a boy very similar, except this one had dancing brown eyes and beautiful wheat-blond hair. He was hot, and she knew why the younger one was good-looking too. _They must be brothers_, she thought. Then, next to him stood another boy, a man, she should say, and he looked like the two other boys. He was probably their older brother, since he seemed too young to be their father. He had brown hair and blazing blue eyes which looked at hers worriedly. Next to him stood a dark-haired boy with dark eyes, and he had backed up a little to give space to the other boys. She saw two other boys; one with jet-black hair and black eyes, and another who was taller and had blond hair and cold, blue eyes. The smaller one had a scar on his face and he looked afraid, while the other one was mean-looking.

As she wondered where she was, she realized that the machine wasn't there, neither was her bag. She started panicking a little but she soon calmed down when the dark-haired one pointed to the corner of the room she was in. Her bag was there and so was her machine, but it looked broken. She sighed inwardly, knowing she would have to fix it.

-"Who are you?" asked the older one. The girl jumped but settled down after she realized that the boys were no threat to her. She mustered the strength and courage to talk, and when she found a little bit of energy left, she answered.

-"My name is...Julie."


	3. Chapter 2: Meeting The Boys

**Hey guys! (I should find something else to say instead of: Hey guys! everytime I post a chapter, it must get annoying for you.) Just wanted to tell you that from now on, chapters will be in one of the boys' or Julie's POV. I will warn you which one. Please, R & R!**

**This chapter will be in Ponyboy's POV.**

* * *

We stood there, awkwardly. I was between Two-Bit and Soda, and next to Soda, Darry was standing between him and Steve. Johnny and Dally entered the living room and started eyeing the girl too, whose name was Julie, had she told us. I thought it was a cute name for a girl like her.

She was eyeing us too, and had panicked when she realized that she might have lost her stuff. Steve pointed the bag and the broken machine–which I had never seen in any store before-in the corner of the living room, and she simply nodded. She looked a little scared of seeing seven boys surrounding her, but she probably understood that we were here to help her, since she calmed down. Then, she had told us her name after Darry had asked her. I wanted to talk to her, but Darry wanted to know the answers as much as I did, and he was faster than me, so I let him ask. Sodapop was curious, too.

"Julie, uh? Julie who?" asked Sodapop. Julie eyed him slowly, and then spoke.

"Julie...LaPointe." she answered nervously. I guess she hated answered all these questions, and maybe she wanted to ask her own. Or maybe she just didn't want to talk at all. I understood how she felt.

"Where do you come from, Julie?" asked Darry.

"I...I come from Edmundston, New-Brunswick, sir..." she answered. Sir? That was a new one.

"Please, no need to call me sir. Just... call me Darry." my eldest brother told her. She nodded hesitantly.

"Now, please tell us, where's Edmundston, New Brunswick?" gently asked Soda.

"It's in Canada..." she answered. I was shocked. Canada? That was far from here.

"Wow, that's far from here. How did you get here?" asked Soda, as if he had read my thoughts.

"I... I was working on my time machine. I wanted to go in the future to see what my career would be, and how life would be. I accidently swatted my water bottle on the machine, and it started making weird sounds. Next thing I know, I wake up in here, with you guys around me..." she explained. Wait, what? Time machine? Future? She then started pleading.

"Please, tell me who you are, and where I am..." Darry backed away a little and presented us.

"As I told you, my name is Darry. Darry Curtis. This is my younger brother Sodapop", he pointed at Soda," and next to him is my youngest brother Ponyboy," he pointed at me and I blushed. I thought Julie would laugh at our names, but she didn't say anything, so Darry kept going, "and next to Ponyboy is our friend, Keith Mathews, but call him Two-Bit, "he pointed at Two-Bit and Two-Bit grinned wildly which made me smile sympathetically at Julie. She gave me a shy smile in return. Darry then pointed at Steve.

"This is Sodapop's best friend, Steve Randal. Next to him is Johnny Cade, Ponyboy's best friend, "he pointed at Johnny, "and next to him is Dallas Winston, but if you want, and if he wants, call him Dally", he said, pointing at Dally and looking at him to see what he would say. Dally simply shrugged and said: "Sure, whatever you wanna call me." Darry then started explaining where she was.

"As for where you are, you're in our house in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in the United States of America." Julie gasped.

"Wait...you mean..." she stuttered, then asked an odd question, "What year are we?"

Darry looked at her as if she was weird, but she didn't notice. He answered anyway.

"We're in 1966." he said, flatly. She quickly shot up from her spot, making us back away a little in surprise. She was terrified of something.

"What?!" she nearly screamed. She then sat back down on the couch and stared blankly at her machine. She kept mumbling weird stuff like: "It didn't work... It sent me in the past..." I got tired of that mumbling, so I decided now was high time I talk to her.

"What do you mean by; _it sent me in the past_?" I asked. She slowly looked at me, and said some shocking news.

"I come from the future, year 2014."

* * *

After several minutes of watching her on the couch, I decided I would show her the house. Dally was leaving for Buck's place, and Johnny was going home. We offered him to stay, but I guess he wanted to give space to Julie, since we weren't going to throw her outside. Steve left for Two-Bit's house with Two-Bit, of course. Soon, it was only my brothers, Julie and I. I motioned Julie to get up and follow me, which she did. As we walked inside the house, I showed her every room.

"You already know where the living room is. This is the kitchen, and this is the bathroom. That room with the closed door is Darry's, and the room right there is mine and Sodapops room. You see, we share a room since my parents died, 'cause I was havin' nightmares and almost every night, I woke both my brothers with my screaming. I still do, unfortunately, and I feel bad about it, but hell, it's not like I can control it. So, don't be surprised if you wake up tonight hearing me screaming my head off." I explained to her.

"I'm...sorry to hear about your parents, Ponyboy." she sadly told me.

"Nah, don't worry about it, I'm fine. I do miss them a lot, but I can get over it no problem." I told her, reassuring her. I smiled at her, and she smiled back. Gosh, but her smile was beautiful. I especially loved gazing in her hazel eyes, which were worried but relieved of at least having someone to help her, ad knowing where she was now.

"Am I sleeping here tonight?" she asked me, suddenly taking importance of where she'll stay during her little trip here.

"That's for you to decide, but I wouldn't choose to sleep outside, if I were you." I then took her hand (of course I had to blush, mind you) and dragged her toward Soda's old room. The bed was still intact, and the room was surprisingly clean. I quickly let go of her hand, feeling uncomfortable holding it in the first place.

"Well, you can sleep here if you want...Who knows how long you'll stay here; might as well get comfortable, right?" I told her. She shrugged.

"I guess you're right. I don't know how long I'll be here, but really, are you sure I'm not bothering you?" she asked, a concerned look on her face. What a stupid question; of course not!

"Nah, not at all. Our friends always crash at our house when their parents bother them." I told her. She looked surprised.

"Really? Gee, if my friends could do that, I would be pleased! But why do their parents bother them?" she exclaimed.

"Steve's dad can be a real asshole sometimes. He always gets drunk and he sometimes kicks Steve out of his house. Johnny's mom and dad always fight, and when they don't fight each other, they beat Johnny up. Dallas comes from New York and lives at Buck's; his «friend's» bar. He hates his dad anyway. There's at least Two-Bit's mother who cares for him, for us, but, since our parents died, Two-Bit started hanging out here more often. I'm glad the gang got this close. So, between you and I, it's ok if you crash here, for as long as you need." I explained, then smiled at her. She didn't return the smile.

"Gosh, Ponyboy, you guys all live rough..." she claimed, scandalised. I decided I would explain to her about our situation.

"Yeah, well, we're called Greasers. We're called like that 'cause we like to put grease in our hair and comb it back and have it long. We wear jeans and leather jackets, and we carry switchblades with us. We often hang out in gas stations; especially the one where Soda and Steve work, the DX. We live in the East-Side of town, and we're poorer than the Socs and the normal classed people. Socs are our enemies; they like to jump us–which means beat us when one of us walks alone-and they don't fight fair. They're the rich kids; they wear madras, and they drive tuff cars, like Corvairs and Mustangs, and they like to have beer blasts.

I'm the youngest member of our small gang; I'm 14. I love to read, to watch movies, I sometimes draw when I feel like it, and I'm smart. Unfortunately for me, that means I'm in the higher classes at school, and those classes are full of Socs. They usually leave me alone, but I'm scared that one day, they're gonna jump me. Johnny got jumped real bad by 4 of them; that's why he always seems afraid and he has that scar on his left cheek.

Johnny's the second youngest of the gang. He hates it when his parents fight, so he almost always crashes here, or he sleeps in the vacant lot; I'll show you where it is tomorrow. He's my best friend, 'cause we have a lot in common. For instance, he like sunsets, just like I do. We're probably the only ones who enjoy watching a sunset. He's quiet and rarely talks. He also likes movies. He doesn't really like books, though. He always hangs out with Dally. Ever since he got jumped by those Socs, Dally swore he would protect him.

Dally looks mean, tough and heartless, but once you know him, he's cool. Don't mess with him, though; he doesn't look mean for nothin'. He won't be rude with you, and if he is, well, he won't mean it. He doesn't like kids, but he cares a lot about Johnny and me. He wants to make sure no Soc beats Johnny again, and he wants to make sure I don't get jumped by Socs since I'm small for my age even though I have a good build. Anyway, Dally is cold and mean 'cause he got arrested when he was ten and he lived in New York; there, he saw tons of stuff he shouldn't have seen, like murders and stuff like that. Never tell him what to do, and don't question him; he knows what he does.

Two-Bit is the wise-cracker of the gang. He's funny, and goofy, and he always tries to cheer us up. He likes beer, Mickey Mouse, and blonds. He flirts with every blond he sees. Consider yourself lucky you're not blond. Anyway, he goes to school but has repeated 11th grade like, 2 times I think. He likes his teachers and always remembers his classes, so his logic is that he doesn't have to keep going on if it means to remember more classes and meet other teachers. Two-Bit, Steve, Johnny and I often hang out during lunch time at the DX instead of eating lunch at school.

Steve is Soda's best friend. They've been buddies since elementary school. When our parents died, Soda dropped out of school to help Darry with the bills. He works full time at the DX while Steve works when he gets out of school in the afternoon. Steve can be real mean sometimes, but don't worry about him. He hates me, or so I think he does. He hates it when I hang out with him and Soda; he thinks I'm just a tag-along kid. I don't bother him, but he likes to make comments about how annoying I am sometimes.

Soda is the person I love the most. He always understands me, or tries to anyway, and he's probably the only one who can calm me down. That's why I sleep with him; when I get nightmares, he always manages to coax me back to sleep by rubbing his hand in circles on my back. I always referred Soda as movie-star kind of hot; he always attracts girls and he has that grin that just can't go unseen. When he grins, it's like you absolutely have to grin too. He has that effect. He's always happy-go-lucky and easy-going. He never drinks, like most Greasers usually do; he can get drunk by simply enjoying life, which fascinates me.

Finally, Darry is our older brother, and the oldest member of the gang. He probably makes the most sense, too. He's the complete opposite of Soda. Darry took custody of us when our parents died, and we all think he grew up too much; even he thinks that way. He works two jobs to pay the bills and even that was barely enough, so now that Soda helps him, it's easier; we can get more food and other supplies. While he likes Soda's company, he always hollers at me. He says I don't use my head even though I'm smart, and I simply hate it when he says that. He says I should concentrate on something else than books and movies, but what can I say? I like them. Darry is handsome too, but if he wouldn't have those cold blue eyes, he would be much handsomer. I'm always scared that one day, things might get too far and that I will be separated from my brothers and thrown into a boys' home." I finished explaining. I was grateful she hadn't interrupted once.

"Wow, your gang is quite something. So is your story." Julie exclaimed. I nodded.

"How about you? What's your story?" I asked her. She seemed hesitant.

"Not that I don't want to tell you, but can it wait tomorrow? We can stop somewhere after you show me the town, Tulsa you said. To be honest, I'm feeling very tired." she told me. I understood.

"Yeah sure, you can crash here, right now. I'm gonna leave and see you tomorrow, I guess." I told her, and she nodded. Just then, Soda came inside the room.

"Hey, you lovebirds, stop talking and go to bed!" he said, teasing us. I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Julie blushed, and I think I blushed too. I playfully punched Soda on the arm and told him to shut up, and he just grinned, which made me and surprisingly Julie grin too. He then put her bag next to her.

"Here's your bag, Julie. The machine is still in the living room, but you're probably tired, so why don't you get it tomorrow? Oh, and make yourself at home." he said, then smiled at her and left the room. She simply nodded, probably getting tired.

"I'm gonna go to my room now. Well...goodnight, and like Soda said, make yourself at home." I said, backing up. She yawned and thanked me. I closed her door and walked to my bedroom.

I couldn't explain why I was so eager for the next day to come.


	4. Chapter 3: Well, Welcome to Tulsa

**Wow, intro + three chapters in one day! I impress myself lol.**

**Anyway, this chapter will be in Julie's POV.**

**And a quick "thank you" to EqualScorpion1's review, which helps me keep going on with the fanfic. Thank you! :)**

* * *

The next day, when I woke up, it was bright outside. I looked around, feeling lost. Where was I? Then, it all came back to me. The time machine, waking up on a couch in a house full of boys...

I had to face reality. My time machine was broken, I got sent in the past, and unless I find a way to repair it, I'll be stuck here for a long time.

There _was_ a good fact about this. I met new friends, and I will discover a whole new world. That's basically what I was planning to do, except in the future. I guess there was nothing wrong about it. After all, the past didn't seem so bad.

I heard a knock on my bedroom door. I pulled the covers back on my body and shouted for the person to come in.

"Good morning, Julie."

"Hey, Ponyboy." I replied. I suddenly felt shy. He was standing at my door, looking at me. None of us were moving. I motioned for him to sit down next to me. He slowly walked, hesitant, but without warning, he tackled me and started tickling me. I shrieked with laughter as I was being tickled in my sides by Ponyboy. Then, I thought of something.

Was he ticklish too?

I faked coughing and gasping for breath. He instantly stopped and asked me if I was ok. I smirked and started tickling him. He yelped, laughing too. We kept tickling each other for, like, ten minutes, before I realized that we were being watched. I instantly stopped, and when Ponyboy looked where I was looking, he stopped too. I noticed he was blushing, and I think I was too, but I didn't pay attention. I was too embarrassed.

"Look at those two kids, tickling each other and blushing like crazy when they notice they had an audience all that time!" joked Sodapop, making me blush even more. My face felt extremely hot. Ponyboy mumbled something that sounded like "shut up..." and shot up, embarrassed too. He walked out of the room, followed by his brother, who winked at me before leaving. I slowly closed the door and then changed.

Then, something hit me. Since I would be stuck here for a while, I could at least go to school. I would go to Ponyboy's school and request to be in his classes, since I'm known in my own school to be smart, too. That would be great! I would have to shop for supplies, though. And today would be a perfect day, right after Ponyboy shows me his town, of course, to go shopping. I could bring him with me!

I was wearing a white long-sleeve shirt with a sleevless denim jacket, covering half of my back. I also wore black skinny jeans and my black low-heel boots, as usual. My hair was still straight but it had gotten a little messy during the night. I calmly brushed it, and it looked as good as new. I didn't need make-up; I despised it. No girl should wear tons of make-up on her face; it hides the true beauty. Well, that's what my mother says, and I kinda agree with her. I decided I was ready to go out in town with Ponyboy.

I opened the door and walked out of the bedroom. I heard shouting coming from the kitchen so I decided I would check it out, you know, since I was curious. What I saw took me by surprise.

"You know as well as I do that walking alone in the streets of Tulsa is dangerous, Ponyboy! You could get jumped by the Socs!" shouted Darry at Ponyboy. I noticed Sodapop standing there and looking at them just like I was: numb. I had no idea why they were shouting, but I guessed it had something to do with showing me Tulsa.

"I won't be alone, Dar! Julie will be with me! Besides, she has to visit town! She might be here for a while, and it doesn't feel right to keep her in the house!" shouted Ponyboy back at Darry. Of course, by the look on Darry's face, he wasn't going to let Ponyboy have the last words.

"Ponyboy, being with Julie is just another reason to attract the Socs! She's new here and they'll know it right away, and they'll also know that she doesn't know about the rivalry between Greasers and Socs! They might even think that she's one of them and that she's betraying them by being with you! Don't you realize that even if she goes with you, she'll be in as much danger as you will?!" shouted Darry. I did understand his logic, but gee, Ponyboy and I were both 14 **(I`m actually 15 but will be 14 in the fanfic)** and I'm sure we could protect ourselves, or even protect each other. I decided now was the time to step in before Ponyboy replies and Darry decides not to let him leave with me.

"Um, Darry, I hope I'm not bothering anyone with my needs, but I have to talk to you about something." I said to Darry, using my sweet voice. He calmed down a little.

"Oh, sure, go ahead and tell me." he said.

"Well, I figured that it might take a while for me to repair my machine, and until then, I would have to stay here. I came up with the idea to go to school so I wouldn't be alone here, and it would give me something to do. Plus, in my school, I am smart, too, so I will request to be in Ponyboy's classes, so I won't be alone. Is that ok?" I explained. Darry nodded.

"Yeah, it's good, but what do you need?" he asked.

"I should maybe go shopping to get school supplies, and I was wondering if Ponyboy could come with me, since I don't know where the store is, and he could show me the town at the same time. Would that be fine? And don't worry about the money, I won't have you spend it for me; I have more than enough." I explained. He seemed hesitant at first, but with both my and Ponyboy's pleading eyes, he finally sighed and nodded.

"Fine, but I want you two here at 7 o'clock maximum, alright? Soda finishes work at 6 and if you're not here before 7, I'll send him to go look for you. Got it? he explained. I nodded at the same time as Ponyboy, which made us look like two kids who promised to be good to get a treat. I laughed to myself as Darry walked toward the front door with Sodapop.

"We're headed to work now. Remember, 7 o'clock, no later!" he shouted as he closed the front door. I heard Ponyboy sight behind me.

-"Is he always like that, Ponyboy? Is that what you meant when you said that he always hollers at you?" I asked him, looking at him. He nodded.

-"You know, Ponyboy, he cares for you. I'm sure he does. It's normal to be strict like that when you're a brother and suddenly *poof*, you have to be a guardian and you have to be more mature. Maybe he's strict because he doesn't want to lose you if you leave the house. Get it?" I told him.

-"Sure, but why isn't he strict with Soda like he is to me? It's not fair. He never hollers at Soda." he protested.

-"Ponyboy, Sodapop is older than you. Darry probably thinks that he's better at taking care of himself than you are. Don't get me wrong: of course you can take care of yourself pretty well too, but Darry wants you to stay young and to stay out of trouble. You haven't been jumped yet **(Note: this story is situated a little before the book, so nothing in the book happened yet.)**, and Darry doesn't want to see how a Socs makeover would look on you. You have to trust his judgement even if sometimes you're not agreeing with it. Trust me, I know how it feels. OK?" I told him. He nodded, which made me smile as I grabbed his hand.

-"Good, now let's get going; I need those supplies!" I told him, which made us giggle as we bolted out the door like two rockets.

* * *

After close to an hour of shopping, we finally got out of the store. Ponyboy had told me what I needed, and if something was missing, I could always come back and get it. I now knew where the store was. I was surprised at how my school supplies costed; but then again, I knew that from 1966 to 2014, a lot of things had changed, including the prices. Luckily, I had brought my wallet and I had all my savings in it; 300$.

"Let's go. We're done shopping anyway. I'll show you a couple of places." he said, holding my hand. I didn't struggle; I liked holding his hand.

* * *

Two hours had passed. By then, Ponyboy had shown me the Dingo, which made me realize that I was hungry, so we stopped to eat and I paid, which made him feel bad but I reassured him that it was ok. He had also shown me the Nightly Double, which he promised would bring me to watch a movie another day. We had walked by Buck's, but I wasn't thrilled to get in, and neither was he, so we didn't stop. Finally, he had shown me the park, which was beautiful with its fountain and swings and stuff. A typical park, but it still made me feel nostalgic; I thought about the one near my house.

After Pony nearly dragged me out of the park, we decided to walk toward the DX. I wanted to know what it looked like, and I wanted to see Sodapop and Steve. When we got there, Sodapop greeted us.

"Hey Pone, hey Julie!" he called at us, cheerful as usual. I smiled and he smiled back.

"Hey Soda. Steve's inside?" Ponyboy asked. His brother nodded.

"Yeah, he's been busy with a customer for an hour now. Major problem with the guy's car, and since Steve is better than me with cars, I let him handle it." Sodapop said.

"You lazy bum", said Ponyboy, grinning. I had to grin too. "You're good too, Soda. Why aren't you helping him?" asked Ponyboy.

"Eh, I have to drag the girls here. Standing outside by the pumps is the easiest way!" claimed Sodapop with one of his wild grins, which made me laugh. Suddenly, we saw a car drive away as Steve joined us, cursing.

"Goddamnit, that guy doesn't have any sense of humor!" nearly shouted Steve. He then calmed down when he saw me. "Oh, hey Julie. Feelin' better?" he asked. I simply nodded. He nodded back, and then headed inside.

"You guys want anything? Coke, Pepsi?" Sodapop offered us. I declined; I hate everything that has pep inside. However, Ponyboy asked for a Pepsi, so his brother got him one.

"Thanks, Soda. We should head back, I still have something to show Julie." he explained to Soda.

"Have a good day, you two, and don't kiss; you know Darry would skin ya, Pone!" shouted Sodapop before heading inside, not giving us time to reply, but Ponyboy shouted back anyway.

"Not cool, Soda, not cool!" he playfully shouted, and I laughed at both brothers. I then became nostalgic again. Sometimes I wish I would have siblings, but I don't, so I'm often lonely. Without meaning to, I sighed. Ponyboy turned, facing me.

"You ok?" he asked me.

"Oh, yeah, I'm ok. I just wish I could have a sibling too; I sometimes feel alone at home, even when my mother is around. And you two just remind me how much close siblings can be when they want to." I told him. He took my hand.

"Hey, it's ok. You won't be alone anymore." he said, smiling. I smiled back. He started dragging me back. I wondered where we were going, but I shut up as I walked with him.

* * *

Ponyboy showed me his school, which was small compared to mine but held about the same number of students as mine. I had to admit it was beautiful, and I couldn't wait to attend to it with Ponyboy in my classes.

After walking for a couple of minutes, we finally stopped at what he called the vacant lot. It was a big enough field and I noticed a football lying near a bush next to us.

"You guys play football?" I asked him. He nodded.

"Yeah, we often play together, three against three; Darry, Johnny and I against Steve, Soda and Two-Bit. Our team always wins since Darry was a pro in football in high school and still is." he explained. I simply nodded. I wasn't a fan of football, but I was looking forward to watch one of the boys' games, if they would all have time to have one. I'm sure they would, and I could always convince Darry again. Suddenly, Ponyboy spoke, snapping me out of my daze.

"So, Julie, what's your story? You promised me you would tell today." he said. I looked at him and explained.

"Well, there's nothing much, really. I've been born with a disease (the name is long and I don't feel like explaining it), and because of that, I have to take a pill per day, and I need a check up at the doctor's office once every two months. I'm used to it by now, so it doesn't annoy me anymore.

My grandpa died when I was 4, almost 5 years old, and a couple of months later, my parents separated. My father lives 6 hours from where I do, and I see him once a month. I'm sure he isn't even aware that I was building a time machine, much less that I'm here right now. Anyway.

Nothing exciting really happened to me beside that. I mean, I moved away from my friends, but I wasn't that far. I just had to change to another school, and get used to another house. Now, I'm going in high school, and I have good grades. Mostly A's, at least.

Sometimes, when I'm in the mood to, and when the song is good, I sing. I love singing, and people say I have a lovely voice, even though I don't really agree.

I also draw, but that became less of an interest over the past months. I painted, too, but I stopped taking lessons when the teacher had to change the location of our classes, so I dropped out of it then.

Now, I'm mostly involved in reading and writing. My French and English teachers say I have excellent vocabulary, and that my poems are really good. I might consider publishing my own poem book.

I'm also involved in music since I barely spend an hour without listening to some songs, and as I said, I sing, too. Another thing related to music I do is play piano. I play piano since I was 7 years old, and I stopped taking lessons, but I still learn songs I love." I told him. I wondered why he was smiling the whole time.

"Y'know, we have a lot in common." he said, pointing out the obvious, but I didn't realize it.

"We do?" I asked, curious. He nodded.

"Yeah, I mean; we both draw, although we don't focus on it much now; we both read and write a lot; we both play piano, too." he told me. I was surprised.

"You play piano?" I asked him, amazed. He giggled.

"Yeah, we have a piano in our house. I could show you when we get back." he told me. Then, his face darkened a little. "I don't play anymore, though; I stopped when Mom and Dad died. You see, my mother played it and wanted to show us how to play. Since Darry didn't want to and Sodapop just can't stay still, they didn't learn it. I didn't mind; in fact, I was getting the hang of it pretty easily." he said, a hint of sadness in his voice.

"Aw, don't be sad. I'm sure they're fine. They're watching you, just like my grandpa is watching me. And I'm sure they're really proud of you." I reassured him, holding his hand. I smiled at him and he smiled back.

"Y'know, I'm glad we found you. I can't help but think of what the Socs would have done if they found you before we did. It would have been rare, though; the lot is in our territory. So anyway, I'm glad we met ya. You dig okay, for a girl." he said. I smiled, feeling my ears go red, but I forgot anything about it. I mumbled a "thanks" before leaning against him, watching the beginning of the sunset with him.

We both thought that sunset was the most beautiful one we had ever seen, and I think we were happy to watch it together.


	5. Chapter 4: The New Gang Member

**Hey guys!**

**I'm sorry I haven't updated yet, I was writing and re-writing the chapter to make sure it was perfect. The fanfic seems to be good for you so far, as I haven't had any critics and I have 3 reviews, which makes me really happy, by the way. Oh, and here is to those I haven't acknowledged yet:**

**Mary Jane Evans: Yes, it is a small world! It's fun to know I have readers so close to me!**

**Hdclark: Why thank you, it's good to know you like my fanfic. :)**

**Anyway, this chapter will be in Sodapop's POV in the beginning and will then change to Darry's POV. You'll easily notice when it changes.**

**Warning: you might think that some of the characters are OOC, but I hope you don't. And there will be cursing at the end of the chapter. **

**By the way, please R & R, it shines my day and makes me write faster. :)**

**P.-s.: Can some of you tell me how my fanfic title is? I still feel like it's not perfect. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

I came back from the DX. It was almost 7, and the house was quiet. _Well, I guess they're not home yet_, I thought. I decided I would wait for them on the front porch. Steve was still at work; he wanted to add some hours to his shift. Probably didn't want to see his dad. Figured he would think that.

I was so lost in thoughts, I hadn't heard footsteps coming my way until someone tackled me. Trust me; it broke me out of my daze.

"Yo, Soda, what's in that noggin' o' yours?" asked Two-Bit, ruffling my hair. I scooted away from him and took my comb out to brush back my hair.

"Aw, man, you know I hate it when you mess with my hair!" I complained. He chuckled.

"Hey, look what the cat brought from the streets!" suddenly shouted Two-Bit. I looked to the sidewalk and saw an interesting sight. Pony was walking with Julie, and they were holding hands.

"Yo, Ponyboy, you grabbed yourself a girl on your way home?" I called, teasingly. He grinned but I saw his cheeks turn a shade of red, and so did Julie's.

"Not cool, Soda. You know as well as I do that she doesn't come from the streets." he replied. I ruffled his hair.

"Was just joking, little bro." I told him, grinning. He let go of Julie's hand and backed away from me, brushing his hair back. If anything, his hair was something he was proud of. Said it made him look _tuff_.

"Aw, cut it out! Y'know I hate it when you mess with my hair." he objected, which made Two-Bit howl with laughter. "What's so funny?" he asked Two-Bit, curious. I had to admit I was curious too.

"You sounded just like your brother barely a minute ago!" he claimed, still laughing a little. Ponyboy grinned and looked at me.

"How 'bout we make him sound like us?" he said. I chuckled.

"Sounds like a plan, bud. Let's get him!" I called, and together, both of us tackled him at the same time. Before Two-Bit even realized what we did, I tickled him while Ponyboy ruffled his hair.

Unfortunately for us, he was a little older, and stronger, sober or not, so he quickly managed to throw us off of him. I knew he wouldn't come after me, so I stepped back a little and stood next to Julie, who was grinning a little. My thoughts were confirmed when Pony tried to run, but even with his speed, Two-Bit managed to tackle him, and in seconds, he had pinned Ponyboy to the ground, ruffling his hair with his free hand while his other arm was holding Ponyboy firmly so he wouldn't escape.

"Gah, Soda, help!" he called to me, laughing, but I shook my head while grinning.

"Not this time, Pone. C'mon, use that noggin'; you can escape Two-Bit without my help!" I told him, and he just grunted and struggled, but he figured it was useless. He stopped moving, abandoning, but Two-Bit didn't let go. I wonder why?

"You sayin' Uncle now, Pone?" Two-Bit asked, chuckling. Ponyboy chuckled and shook his head. Then he did something I never thought he would, but it worked.

"Never in a million years!" he replied, then managed to hit Two-Bit in the soft spot with his elbow. He hit him pretty hard, too. Two-Bit immediately let go of him and squeezed his eyes shut, moaning. Ponyboy got up and stood next to us.

"That oughta teach you to let me go!" he called at Two-Bit, but Two-Bit was too concentrated on easing the pain to answer, which made me chuckle.

"Nice one, Ponyboy." Julie admitted, and she laughed.

For a second or so, Two-Bit stopped moaning and shut his eyes. He then grinned, and without warning, he shot up and walked toward Julie at high speed. Before she could even blink, he grabbed her by the waist, and lifted her up, putting her on his shoulder. She shrieked as she struggled, but she was laughing so hard, she could barely move. Ponyboy wanted to tell Two-Bit to let her go, but he thought it pretty funny, so he shut up and smiled, shaking his head in disbelief. Two-Bit still surprised him with his crazy stunts.

Finally, after a minute or two, Darry came, followed by Johnny and Dallas. Two-Bit then realized he was still holding Julie, and, his face as red as a tomato, he immediately let her go, gently putting her back on the ground on her feet. She laughed a little when she saw the boys' faces, and I had to admit it was a funny sight.

"Hey y'all, mind telling me what the hell was that about?" said Dallas. I just shrugged.

"Nothin' much. Two-Bit ruffled my hair and then Pony and Julie came back home (I decided I wouldn't tell Darry _yet _about the fact that they were holding hands) and then I joked Pony and ruffled his hair, and he said the exact same thing I said to Two-Bit, so it made him laugh, so Pony 'n I tackled him and tickled and ruffled his hair, but he threw us off and wrestled with Pony, and Pony hit him in the groin hard, and then Julie laughed at him and he picked her up to get his revenge." I quickly explained to the gang, and they understood. Well, I think they did, since I was talking fast, not wanting to embarrass Two-Bit, Pony an' Julie more than they must have felt.

"So, uh, how 'bout we get inside?" suggested Darry. I guess he was feeling awkward standing outside with all of us, just like I was. I nodded, and I saw the boys nod too, and Julie. We all headed inside the house. I had to admit I was gettin' hungry.

* * *

I sat in my recliner, newspaper in hand and a cup of coffee in the other. What I saw about the Vietnam War troubled me, but I paid no further attention as I flipped from page to page.

The gang had gone out in the lot for a while to play football after eating. Steve had probably joined them after his shift was done. Dally wanted to play, so I told him to replace me; I wanted to relax tonight. Julie had gone with them; Ponyboy had told me she said she wanted to watch them play even though she wasn't that a big fan of sports, and she admitted she thought it hilarious that people just throw themselves on others for a ball. I knew the guys; they would be too proud to let her get away with her comment, which made me chuckle. The boys wanted to prove to her just how much of a good sport it was, and I knew they would play hard and be so freaking tired when they would get back, that they would have to lean on one other. If one would fall asleep, the others would follow in two seconds flat. No kidding.

It felt nice to be alone; now I could think of this whole situation.

What were the chances of someone ending up in the lot after an experience gone wrong with a time machine? Yet, Julie proved us it wasn't impossible.

I thought about Julie. She was too young for me, and for the guys for that matter (although she was Pony's age), yet she still was a pretty girl. She fitted well with Ponyboy; I mean, they had the same hair color, almost the same eyes, and their personality was very similar. They both loved reading, writing, drawing, piano playing, and watching movies. The only difference in them was that Julie wasn't athletic; she didn't run track or anything like Ponyboy did.

I looked at her time machine, relaxing in the corner of the living room, still untouched. It did look weird, but it was normal; it was torn up at some places and pitch black stains covered most of it. I was surprised it was still standing.

Then, I thought of how long Julie would have to stay here; not that I minded her staying here, but for once, I was curious. And it was a big change for us.

We couldn't just walk in the house, shirtless or only wearing boxers (not that I did that, it was more Sodapop doing that, but still), and we couldn't always have the gang, even though Julie didn't seem to care.

Julie again. Sigh. She looked like a Soc, with her hair and her clothes, but I guess she didn't act like one. She sure as hell didn't act like a Greaser girl, either. She would carry a blade, first of all, and she would swear, and she would maybe put a little bit of grease in her hair, and all what we do. I didn't want her in any trouble, just like I didn't want Ponyboy in trouble, too.

Just when I looked up, I saw her walk into the living room, laughing her head off, as Two-Bit cracked some jokes about Dally sucking in football, and I heard Soda's too happy tone, too. I had heard it many times before.

"Man, Dar, we beat your team for once!" he called at me, his grin menacing to rip his face in pieces any second. I had to grin back.

"Sorry little bro, but that didn't count as your rematch; I wasn't there. " I replied. Soda just pouted at my remark.

"It was one heckofa game, though", called Two-Bit, holding his laughter, "I never saw Dally suck at anything, but he was almost sucking the foot ball!" he shouted, and with that said, he laughed as he ran away from Dally, who was fuming. They were about to arm wrestle when I realized that they were dangerously close to Julie's time machine.

"Guys! Take your little fight outside." I called to them, and they both stopped, looking outside.

"Nah, I think I'm gonna head to Buck's. Tim said he would hang out there tonight." he pointed at Two-Bit. "I'll get my revenge for your fucking jokes about football. Somehow, man, I'm gonna find out something you're no good at an' I'm gonna rub it off on ya, so that way you won't tease me no more!" he called as he headed outside.

I then noticed that Ponyboy and Julie weren't in the living room with us.

"Hey, guys, where are Pone 'n Julie?" I asked. Sodapop grinned at me, then pointed the front porch with his chin. I looked from the window and saw Ponyboy talking to Julie (although I couldn't make out any words) and Julie softly nodding her head, which was resting on his shoulder. Then I realized; they were looking at the sunset, cuddling to each other.

Maybe Julie was being a very good friend to Ponyboy (and maybe even more of a friend), but she was a new friend to us, too, and she was now a part of the gang.


	6. Chapter 5: The Best Day Ever

**Hey guys!**

**Just to let you know, I would have published this chapter yesterday, but my computer lagged or something and I couldn't even submit the document so I could update the fic! I got so pissed off, but while I waited for it to unlag, I wrote my other chapter, so there's a huge chance that I publish two or even three chapters today. Meanwhile, I hope you enjoy!**

**Note: I will stop writing an Author's not in the beginning of every chapter. I will only write one to warn you readers of who's POV it is, and to acknowledge a review. By the way, please review, it will make me update faster, and it will make me happy. :)**

**This chapter will be in Julie's POV.**

* * *

Today I was surprised when Ponyboy came in my temporary bedroom to wake me up. I noticed it was 6:30 in the morning.

"Wake up, sunshine." he whispered in my ear, then sat on the bed by my feet. I smiled but groaned. I wasn't a morning person.

"Why did you wake me up?" I mumbled, and he grinned.

"We're Monday. You're starting school, remember?" he said, and only then did I realize. Of course, I had to attend school even when I wanted a small vacation.

"Remind me again why I decided to attend school?" I asked him, grunting.

"You didn't want to be alone here; said you'd feel awkward. And you wanted to catch up to your usual work since God knows how long you'll be here and how much work you'll miss." he claimed, and eventually I sat up, stretching my arms and legs.

"I guess you're right." I told him, and smiled. He smiled back, gently brushing my hair back behind my ear. Merely seconds later I heard his older brother call his name.

"You'd better go; I'll join you after I get dressed up." I told him, and he nodded, walking out the door and closing it. I sighed; I hated waking up early every morning, but going to school was my idea, plus I had requested to be in Ponyboy's classes, and that I would like to see; a smart Greaser. The thought made me chuckle a little, but everything was possible in life.

What were the chances of ending up here after a time machine accident? Yet it happened, and I was oddly happy. My new friends were all boys, and I thought they were cool and nice with me. They were a fun gang to hang out with. I thought it unfair that they all had to suffer a lot, but I admired their friendship; they were all like brothers.

I decided to stop thinking and get ready for school. I picked the first pair of sweatpants in the bundle of clothing I had shoved in my bag, and I got a T-shirt with it. I didn't want to use one of the scarves I had brought with me; maybe those people didn't even wear a scarf as an accessory like I was used to do, but only if it was cold outside. I finished changing and then I opened my door, being greeted by Sodapop, who was just about to knock.

"Oh, hey, Julie!" he said, startled to see me as he dropped his fist next to his body, unclenching it.

"Hello, Sodapop. I take it I was taking too long to change?" I joked. He shrugged.

"Nah, I just came to get you. You gettin' hungry?" he asked me, and I had to admit, now that I thought about it, I was getting hungrier by the second.

"Yeah, sure." I admitted, and with that said, I walked toward the kitchen with Sodapop following me. When I got there, Steve, Two-Bit and Johnny came in the house. I waved at them, and Steve waved back, while Two-Bit greeted me his own way: shouting my name. I swear he could be heard from three blocks away. I shook my head but fought to let go of a smile. Johnny simply nodded and shyly smiled at me. I expected some toasts or eggs or something natural for breakfast, but instead, I got surprised when I saw chocolate cake on the table, and Pony taking a chunk of it.

"Is it someone's birthday?" I asked, curious. Ponyboy shook his head while holding his laugh and Darry explained to me.

"Nah, we usually have that for breakfast. When our parents died, Ponyboy and Sodapop both started that habit. At first I objected, but I gave in eventually; it's a fact that no Curtis can resist chocolate, much less chocolate cake and chocolate milk to drink." he told me, and I stared at the boys in awe as they each took a chunk. Then without thinking I took one too.

I would like to get used to that habit.

* * *

Steve parked in the school's parking lot while I prepared to step out of his car. When the engine stopped running, I took it as an immediate sign to hop off.

Darry had treated me just like he treated Ponyboy this morning; he made sure I had all my stuff ready for my first day. I wasn't a freaking five year old, but I was so used to it at home, that it didn't bother me. The only difference was that this time, it was a guy, six years older than me, who took care of me instead of my own mother. It felt awkward, but I ignored that feeling.

Just like I suspected, all eyes turned on me. I felt students stare as I walked past them, and I fought hard not to blush. I wasn't used to be the center of attention in my school, so here, it felt... irregular. Not normal. I decided to ignore it.

Just like I had requested, I was in Ponyboy's classes. I felt better having someone I know in my classes. For instance, I heard my name being said in whispers all over the classrooms, and if it wouldn't be for Ponyboy telling them to shut up, I wouldn't bear that. Of course, he said so himself that he wasn't acting like usual (usually he didn't talk) but he felt the need to help me for my first day. I thanked him with a hug.

For lunch, we met with Steve, Two-Bit and Johnny. I didn't know the boys all went to school (except Sodapop, who supposedly was a drop-out, Darry, who had graduated, and Dallas, who didn't care), but it's not like I cared anyway. They do what they want.

We drove over to the DX, where Sodapop was working full-time. There, the boys grabbed a couple of chocolate bars, and Ponyboy grabbed a Pepsi. He had told me that he was a Pepsi fan. I had to admit he wasn't lying, after seeing him down the Pepsi like his life depended on it. I grabbed a random sandwich, hoping it wasn't an egg sandwich. It was ham. I could go with that.

I got to the counter to pay for my sandwich and I grabbed a water bottle too. I paid for it and headed outside to wait for the boys. Ponyboy joined me, seeing as he didn't buy anything except his Pepsi, which he downed in 5 seconds flat.

"Hey, you like your day so far?" he asked me as we sat on the bench outside the DX. I nodded while I munched on my sandwich.

"I wouldn't like it if we wouldn't be in the same classes. Thanks for standing up for me. I promise I'll stand up for myself tomorrow; today I just wanted to get used to my classes. And I have to admit that my favourite teacher is Mr. Syme. He's nice enough." I answered, and kept eating my sandwich even though it wasn't the best one I had ever eaten. It would have to do.

"Yeah, Mr. Syme is tuff. And I don't mind standing up for you. I just can't stand that people bother other people just for the heck of it. I thought the Socs were better than that, but I guess they're just low people." he stated, and I found myself agreeing. I wanted to add something more but before I could talk, Steve, Two-Bit and Johnny joined us, Steve motioning at his car.

"You guys ready to head back to school?" he asked, and I nodded. I got up and threw the sandwich's plastic cover in the trash bin.

When we got back to school, I immediately headed to my next class with Ponyboy by my side.

The afternoon got by pretty fast, seeing as how I daydreamed in most of my classes instead of listening. People kept glancing my way and whispering stuff about me, but I could care less.

Finally, when the last class was over, I headed toward the back of the school where the track field was. Ponyboy told me he had track practice, and he didn't want me heading to his house alone, and I agreed to watch him anyway, so I stayed and sat on the bleachers as I watched him run. I had to admit, he was pretty impressive, and he sure ran fast. Of course I believed him when he told me he was a track star, but until I saw him in action, I didn't take the word «star» this seriously. It made me grin.

After an hour, he walked toward me, his bag in hand, ready to head back home. I got up and almost stumbled since I got up fast and it made me dizzy, but he caught my hand and set me back on my feet. I thanked him, laughing, as we walked toward the house, hand in hand. Unfortunately for him, we walked by his track teammates, and they whistled at us and teased Ponyboy about his first girlfriend. Was I really his first girlfriend? Did he even consider me that way? I had to ask him.

* * *

Darry got home an hour after us, seeming very tired.

"Hello Darry, how was your day?" I asked him, not forgetting my manners. He sighed exhaustedly.

"It was yet another big day. Although not as bad as last Friday, but it was still enough to put me out of it." he stated, and I nodded, understanding. I myself felt exhausted after my first school day.

"How was yours?" he asked me, and I smiled.

"It was fine. I was in all of Ponyboy's classes, as I requested, which made me feel better. Which reminds me", I told Darry then turned at Ponyboy, "you never told me you skipped a grade." I told Ponyboy.

"I didn't? I swear I did." he replied, which made me shrug.

"Maybe it slipped out of my mind, though I'm not sure how, but in my case, it happens often." I joked, and we both giggled. Darry shook his head, but a grin broke out of his lips as he sat down in his recliner.

"Dar, did you forget that tonight's your night to cook?" Ponyboy said to his older brother, who sighed yet again. He got up and put Ponyboy into a headlock, ruffling his hair.

"You couldn't have told me sooner, huh little buddy?" he asked, faking disappointment, but he took out the ingredients we need and started cooking after letting go of Ponyboy, who was still laughing, but it was fading off. Then, without warning, he grabbed my hand and dragged me toward his room, without Darry noticing.

"What are you doing?" I asked him as I tried to walk by myself, but I was having a hard time keeping up with his fast pace.

"I just remembered I wanted to show you something." he told me, and with that said, we entered his room. He let go of my hand and frantically searched for something on his desk. At first he looked confused and panicky but then his face lit up when he grabbed something. It looked like a drawing pad, and with further examination, I realized that it was. He flipped from page to page until he stopped at the last one and handed the drawing pad to me. On its page showed a sketch of my face.

"Ponyboy, it's so beautiful!" I claimed, tears of happiness flowing in my face.

"I knew you'd like it. Here, take it." he said, but before he could tug on the page to rip it off his drawing pad, I grabbed his wrist. He looked at me with concern.

"Keep it, Ponyboy. It will be a reminder of me when I leave." I told him. I then thought about my camera, and my face lit up. I rushed in my temporary room before he could say anything and took my camera from my bag. When I got back in his room, he was still there, but when he saw me with the camera, he grinned.

"I'll take a picture of the drawing so that way I'll always see it when I want to, and you'll get to keep it." I suggested, and he nodded. I took a picture of the drawing and showed it to Ponyboy. He raised his thumb in the hair as if saying the picture was perfect, and I went back to my room to put it back in my bag.

I walked back to his room as he got out, holding his drawing pad to where the sketch of my face showed. I wanted to ask him what he was planning to do, but I guessed it before a word could escape my lips. He wanted to show it to his brothers and possibly the other guys in the gang. I smiled at how proud he looked when Darry complimented him.

"Awesome drawing, Ponyboy. I'm sure Julie likes it." he said. I shook my head, which seemed to hurt Ponyboy and confuse Darry. I smiled.

"I don't like it, I love it!" I replied, and instantly, a wide grin appeared on Ponyboy's sweet face. Darry grinned one of his rare grins, obviously caught off guard by what I wanted to say.

* * *

After dinner, I went outside on the front porch. I wanted some fresh air, which surprised me, considering I wasn't someone who actually spent time outside, but I liked the fresh air in Tulsa. It seemed different, less...polluted, what with all the toxic waste and all the pollution back in 2014, even though it wasn't that big of a problem. Here it still was clearer. Just then I heard the door open and close back, and Ponyboy sat next to me.

"Hey Pony." I greeted him.

"Hey Julie. Came to see if you're doing ok here." he replied, and I smiled.

"Of course." I replied back, and he smiled too.

"So, you liked school today?" he asked, and I nodded.

"Yeah, well, I guess I'll get used to the whispering in class and the glances", I told him, "but honestly, it's kinda relaxed; that's more than I can say about my school, which isn't like yours at all. Mine is bigger but counts the same number of students, and someone always has something to say in class to annoy a teacher. But here, I find it pretty quiet." I explained. He snorted but didn't add anything. _Now's my chance to ask him my question_, a voice said, and I realized it was my own, in my head.

"So, Ponyboy, am I really your first girlfriend? Do you even consider me like that?" I asked, referring to what his track buddies had told him when they were teasing him right before leaving school. He first looked startled by my question and had a thoughtful expression, but he soon replaced it with a grin.

"Well, you could say that even though we may not officially be a couple, I love you and wouldn't let anyone get his hands on you, not even one of the gang." he told me, and I grinned back. Then, he came right in front of me and brushed the back of his right hand on my left cheek in a gentle manner. I instantly felt the warm touch of his hand on my cold cheek, and I felt like a thousand butterflies were fluttering in my stomach all at once.

With the same hand, he brushed back the hair that fell on my face and rested my cheek in his palm. He put his other hand on my back, keeping me close to him. A smile appeared on his lips and then he leaned closer as he rested his lips on mine, at first softly, then it became more insistent, as if wanting more. After what seemed like hours when it was only seconds, we parted away, looking at one other in the eye.

He sat down next to me and put his arm around my waist as he pulled me closer to his body. I rested my head on his shoulder and put my hand on his knee. He put his free hand on mine and we both smiled, thinking about our wonderful first kiss while watching the beautiful sunset in front of our sparkling eyes.


	7. Chapter 6: Rumble Ahead

**This chapter will be in Ponyboy's POV.**

**Warning: Emotional chapter.**

* * *

Almost a week had gone by since Monday, and our kiss. Unfortunately I had to tell Darry about my relation with Julie, otherwise Soda would have told him, and it wouldn't have been a pretty sight. Darry didn't mind much; just as long as we stayed in our bedrooms, which was fine by me.

Julie seemed mighty happy since Monday. She always was in a good mood, just like Soda. And I was proud to be the reason why. She had told me so, which made me happy too.

Today was Saturday. Usually I was up late, but Julie wanted to go to the movies, so I promised I would wake her up early. This morning, however, she was the one who woke me up.

"Wake up, sunshine." she told me in her sweet voice as she smiled. She had picked the habit of being called "sunshine" since it was the personal nickname I gave her every morning when I woke her up.

"Hey Julie" I whispered as she planted a gentle kiss on my cheek. Her smile then faded.

"You better get up; Darry doesn't seem to be in a good mood this morning." she whispered as she got up, then headed to her own room to change. I did as she told and changed.

I met her in the kitchen, and I noticed that Soda was about to leave, his DX cap on his head.

"Hey Soda." I mumbled, and he barely smiled in response. I noticed he had dark circles under his eyes.

"You look awfully tired. Are you ok?" asked Julie to Sodapop, and he nodded.

"Yeah, I just haven't slept well, is all." he said, and she nodded back, understanding how he felt. Darry then came in the kitchen, without even looking at me.

"Hey Darry." I greeted, and he nodded in response. _Gee_, I thought,_ what's with my brothers this morning?_ I think Julie noticed too since she stayed silent as she made herself some toasts.

"Guys, you ok? You seem tired or...mad." I stated, and both my brothers looked at each other before looking at me.

"A rumble was called yesterday by the Socs. It's tonight. Seems they haven't jumped many of us these days and they wanted to fight." Soda explained, and I froze. A rumble? I hate fights and rumbles.

"Why do you look so mad yet so tired? Why don't I know anything about it?" I snapped, getting panicky a little.

"I woke up at 1 in the morning since I was oddly thirsty for chocolate milk, and I noticed something taped on our front door. I rushed to Darry's bedroom, woke him up and showed him." Soda said.

"Well, what does it say?" I asked coolly.

"I'm gonna read it. It says here:

«We''e gonna get you and get your girl too, unless you both show up for the rumble. It's gonna be held at our park, on our territory, tomorrow at 11. If you don't show up, we're gonna get you in your house, and you're gonna be sorry.»" Darry read, and I froze, just like Julie. What do they want with me and Julie? Soda probably noticed my expression since he got up, clenched one of his fists and put his other hand on my shoulder reassuringly.

"Pony, I swear if they get near you, they'll be lucky to even have a face..." he whispered angrily. I still shivered.

"Pony, do you have any idea what they want with you?" asked Darry. I shrugged, but then I thought of something.

Flash-back

_I was walking out of my classroom just as a red-headed girl came in, and we collided. She dropped her books on the ground just as mine fell next to hers._

_"Gosh, I'm sorry..." I told her, and she shook her head._

_"No, I'm sorry, I guess I wasn't looking where I was going..." she said as she proceeded to get her stuff, but I stopped her._

_"Let me help you." I said as I picked up her stuff and handed it to her. Then I picked up my stuff and stood in front of her._

_"Thank you. What's your name?" she said, and I smiled._

_"Welcome. And my name is Ponyboy Curtis. Yours?" I said and asked._

_"I'm Sherri Valance, but my friends call me Cherry, you know, because of my hair..." she said, and I recognized her._

_"Oh, I know who you are; you're a cheerleader, right?" I asked, and she nodded._

_"I better get going now. Nice meeting you, Cherry." I said, and she smiled._

_"Nice meeting you too, Ponyboy." she said, and then walked in her class. I entered my other class just when the bell rang and told Julie that I went to the bathroom._

* * *

_Just as I opened my locker, I was shoved face first inside. I turned around to see a couple of Socs standing behind me._

_"What the hell do you want?" I spat, annoyed._

_"You're the Greaser who tried to pick up my girl before class." said one of them. I recognized him as Bob Sheldon, the leader of his gang, and Cherry's boyfriend. I shook my head._

_"No, I was just helping her get her stuff back after I accidently bumped into her..." I told him, but I guess it wasn't smart, as he pinned me on the locker next to mine. I moaned as my back fully hit the locker._

_"You better not be lying to us, Grease." he spat in my face, and I shook my head. Just then I heard a voice._

_"Hey, what do you think you're doing!" called Julie to the Socs, "You better leave my boyfriend alone!"_

_"You got yourself a girl, Greaser? I got to say, you're full of surprises, what with skipping a grade and being the track star and now picking yourself a girl? And I have to admit she's pretty cute, too." he told me, and I growled._

_"You better leave her alone and out of our fight." I warned, and then another guy known as Randy Anderson slugged me in the stomach, leaving me out of breath for a second. Bob let me go and I sank on my knees on the ground, catching my breath._

_"Yeah well you better leave my girl alone too, Grease." Bob spat in my ears, and left with his gang, walking by Julie as she ran toward me._

_"Ponyboy, are you alright?" she asked me, and then she realized that I was catching my breath, so she helped me up. "Let's bring you to the nurse'__s office." she suggested, and then the bell rang._

_"I'll be fine, Julie. You'd better go to class; I'll join you later." I said, but she shook her head._

_"No, the nurse will need a witness, and I was there, so I'll tell her what happened while she checks on you." she said, and I couldn't help but smile at her._

_"Thanks for standing up for me; that was very brave of you." I thanked her, and she smiled back._

_"Greasers stick together, Ponyboy. I might not be an official Greaser, but I definitely won't be a Soc." she said as we entered the nurse's office._

End of flash-back

"Maybe I know..." I whispered as all these memories came flashing back.

"What do you mean?" asked Julie; the first thing she said since this whole conversation started.

"Before you snap, guys, I have to tell you something. Julie, listen too. One day I bumped into this red-headed Soc girl while getting out of class, and I helped her get her stuff back when it fell on the floor. We talked a little and she told me her name was Cherry Valance. Unfortunately her boyfriend saw me, and right after lunch, he and his friends came to my locker and provoked me.

He pinned me on a locker and told me to leave his girl alone. Then Julie saw what was going on and told them to leave me alone. They started teasing me about having her as my girlfriend and saying that she was cute, so I got mad and told them to leave her alone too. His friend slugged me on my stomach and he let me go, telling me to leave his girlfriend alone and he left me there while I was catching my breath. Julie helped me up and brought me to the nurse's office and the rest of the day, I was fine." I told them, and they stood there, looking at me. Darry looked angry.

"Why didn't you tell any of us?!" he yelled, and I flinched at his tone.

"I...I didn't want to bother you with my problems, and plus, that was Wednesday! I thought they would leave me alone! I swear, Dar!" I said, a little scared of his reaction. He was about to yell at me again but Soda spoke instead.

"Oh, Ponyboy... You never bother us with your problems, you should have told us..." he said, and I felt bad. I should have known Soda would understand how I feel and convince me to talk. Darry was another story.

"You still should have said something! Maybe we could have worked this out with the Socs! Now they're after you!" he yelled, and I got mad.

"Exactly! If they're after me, than why are you mad at me? You should help me, not yell at me! Plus, it's not like it's my fault they're after me!" I yelled back, and his face got even redder.

"How can I help you if you don't say anything?!" he said, and that shut me up. I honestly had no idea. I was breathing heavily as Darry kept yelling.

"I _want_ to help you, Ponyboy, but you _have_ to talk! I can't do anything if you keep everything to yourself! Now they want you to that rumble and I don't want either of you to get hurt! Can't you understand that?!" Darry yelled, and I stepped back. I hated it when Darry yelled at me, but this time, I admitted he had a reason to. He took a step toward me but Sodapop stopped him.

"Please, guys, stop yelling!" Julie pleaded, and I froze. I forgot that she was still there, listening to our argument and watching us yell. "Ponyboy, you should have told your brothers! I know you didn't want them to worry, but they want to protect you!" I lowered my gaze to the floor, feeling bad. She then turned to Darry. "Please, Darry, don't be mad at him! I know you want to help him so bad, but he didn't want to worry you! He thought he would bother you if he told you about the Socs since you work so hard, so don't blame him!" she said, close to tears.

"But Ponyboy, you know you wouldn't bother me... I only want to make you feel safe..." Darry said, his voice soft, and proceeded to hug me. At first I struggled but I knew Darry was strong, and he wouldn't let me go, so eventually I gave in to his hug and hugged him tightly myself, tears flowing down my face. I didn't want to bawl, but I quietly sobbed in his chest. He didn't care if his shirt got wet, since his own tears fell on top of my hair.

"I'm sorry, Darry..." I mumbled, and I felt him shake his head.

"Don't worry about that Ponyboy. I won't yell at you again. I just want you safe." he said, and I broke down. I felt Soda's grip on me too as I was crushed between both brothers in a tight, comforting hug. Soda had a couple of tears falling down his face too, but he didn't bother to wipe them off. Then, I remembered Julie was still there, so I broke free of my brothers' hug and hugged her. She hugged me back and patted my back while whispering soothing words in my ears.

"Sshhh, Ponyboy, you're gonna be ok, it will be fine, your brothers and I will protect you, don't worry..." she told me, and I softly nodded, my head slightly moving against her shoulder. She was the only one who wasn't crying, unlike all of us. She then let go of me and took my hand in a reassuring way. She smiled as I smiled back.

"Ponyboy, listen to me, now. I promise I won't let any Soc near you, but you gotta tell me when one of them bugs you, alright?" Darry told me, and I nodded.

I felt safer with my brothers, my friends and my girlfriend by my side. I would be ready for those Socs.


	8. Chapter 7: Meet the Socs

**This chapter will be in Sodapop's POV.**

**Warning: you might think that Sodapop and Johnny are OOC. I hope it doesn't ruin the chapter.**

* * *

The day passed as if nothing happened this morning, but Ponyboy was being a little distant from the gang, and he would stick closer to Darry. I thought it was odd: he usually wanted to cool down after having an argument with Darry and keep his distance from him, even if the argument was settled. I guess he felt like he needed Darry to protect him. I think he was scared shitless of the rumble meant to be held in an hour exactly.

I wasn't, but I can't say I wanted to fight in the rumble, either. That and I was worried for Julie.

Julie. She had to go there too; otherwise they would get her and Ponyboy and hurt them. I didn't want any of these damn Socs near Julie or my kid brother. I mean; both of them were 14. That's too young to even fight in a rumble, in Darry's opinion. Suddenly, I felt an idea surge in my mind as it escaped my lips.

"Dar, I could take care of 'em." I told Darry. He looked at me curiously, just like the rest of the gang. At first, I felt weird saying that, but it's like my mouth couldn't stop. "I mean, I don't want to fight. I don't want Ponyboy and Julie to fight. Heck, I don't want Johnny to fight. I can stay here and protect the three of 'em. I can stay here and make sure they're ok, make sure no Soc gets near them." I explained, and I think he understood.

"Y`know Darry, I agree with him for once", said Two-Bit, which surprised me. Two-Bit was never serious. "I mean, I don't want Ponyboy to get hurt, and Julie either, and I'm sure both kids don't wanna fight. I'm sure even Johnny doesn't want to fight. And the note said that if they don't show up, well, the Socs would come here and hurt them. If Sodapop is willing to stay here and protect 'em, then let him do it." Eventually Darry nodded.

"Fine, but if Socs are to come here, I don't want my house to be messed up. If they wanna fight, at least convince them to fight outside. I don't want my house trashed because of them. Two-Bit, Steve, Dallas, you still coming?" he asked the boys, and they nodded. "Ponyboy, Julie, and Johnny, you ok staying here with Sodapop?" he asked the three youngest of the gang, and they nodded. He then turned to me. "I'm counting on you." he told me.

"Sure, Dar, don't worry; I'll be careful. We all will. Y'all beat 'em up good now." I called in a high pitched voice, and the gang laughed. Darry nodded, smiling amusingly, and he called for the other boys to follow him as they ran out of the house in a series of whoops and funny shouts.

I sighed. This would be a long night.

* * *

I looked at the clock and noticed that it was 11 o'clock. It meant that the rumble was starting. It also meant that if the Socs noticed Julie and Pony's absence, they would rush here and get them.

As I walked from the kitchen to the living room, I heard a knock on the door, followed by several more knocks, each one louder than the other.

"We know you're in there, Grease! Show your trash face!" one of them yelled. I noticed that Ponyboy was trying to look tough, but he was awfully scared. I myself was nervous, but I had to stay strong for the three of 'em. Julie was cuddling with Ponyboy, comforting him, while Johnny...Johnny looked like his scared self, as always, but I noticed he also looked a little...angry. I couldn't wait to see how he would handle the Socs.

"Calm down, Ape Face! We're gonna fight y'all; we just don't want to fight in the house!" I yelled back.

"Fine, whatever." one of them said before telling his friends to back away. I opened the door, and Ponyboy cautiously followed me, still afraid. Julie was right on his heels, holding his hand, while Johnny walked behind her. His eyes grew wide when he saw the Socs, but he kept his mouth shut.

"Now, what do you want with my brother and his girlfriend, uh? Why the threat?" I asked, angry at them for even getting _near _Ponyboy.

"I want my revenge, that's all. He never should have talked to my girl." one of them spat, and I instantly thought that he was the leader of the band. I glanced at Ponyboy, whose face was pale, but he kept his cool.

"I told you; I never meant to talk to her. We bumped into each other, and I helped her pick her stuff back. There's nothing wrong with that." he objected, and I saw the Soc growl.

"And whose fault is that, uh? I'm sure you had it planned. You _purposely_ bumped into my girl!" he replied. What?! That's not an excuse! I wanted to protest, but another Soc cut us off.

"Alright, enough bickering. We came for revenge, we're gonna get revenge." he said, and then smirked. Another Soc car I haven't noticed before stopped in front of the fence, and three more Socs stepped out, joining the group. I sighed with frustration. _Great_, I thought, _now they're seven, and we're four._

"Hey, wait a sec, that's not fair. Seven against four." I protested, but the leader shook his head.

"There's nothing fair in life." he said, and delivered the first punch. Right in my face. I groaned as I tried getting up after falling on the ground, but two Socs came at me, and I had to defend myself first of all.

I caught a glimpse of Johnny. Johnny was surprisingly holding himself very well, dodging punches and delivering his own.

Then, in the corner of my right eye, I saw Ponyboy. He was fighting off two Socs, just like I was. He didn't seem scared, though; he seemed worried.

Then, what I saw made me understand _why_ he was worried.

Julie was struggling against two Socs, and she seemed terrified. She moaned in pain as one of the Socs twisted her left wrist, and that Soc then grabbed both her wrists and brought them behind her back. The other Soc took a blade out of his back pocket, flicked it open, and turned, facing us. He held the blade against her throat. I heard every word he told her.

"Now, don't move, babe, or that knife could cut you real badly. Don't say a word, or our friends will hurt your boyfriend even more. Don't cry for help, don't do anything. Just watch your friends getting hurt by our friends, and then we'll let you go, ok?" he said, and she just stood there, frozen. She started at me right in the eye, and I could see the panic in her eyes. I had to help her. Then, I heard a groan and the sound a body made when it fell on the ground. I turned my gaze to see that the Soc Johnny was occupied with was out cold.

"Johnny, help Ponyboy!" I yelled, and he nodded, although I couldn't see him anymore. I had to focus on the Socs beating me up.

With unthinkable strength, I freed one of my hands and punched one of the Socs right on the face, knocking him out. Great, already one down, another to go. I jumped up and punched the other Soc on his chest and stomach, making him double over on the ground. I kicked him in the ribs as he cried out in pain, and finally I kicked him on his legs and arms. I punched him straight on the face, and he was knocked out too. I just had to find a way of helping Julie. But when I caught her gaze, she was crying. I looked at Ponyboy and froze.

Ponyboy was out like a light. A Soc was unconscious not far from him, and the other one was beating up Johnny. He was stronger compared to Johnny's previous opponent, and I knew that this was a losing battle for my friend. I tackled the Soc and started punching him on the stomach, arms and legs. Johnny kicked him in his ribs, and in a matter of seconds, he was out too. I turned to Julie and the two Socs who held her.

"Let her go! We beat your friends, now leave her alone!" I yelled at him, but I caught something behind them. Darry, Steve, Two-Bit and Dallas were coming back. I inwardly smirked, knowing all I had to do was keep the two Socs distracted. Steve and Darry were sneaking up behind the Socs, ready to beat them to a pulp.

Just like I predicted, Steve tackled the guy holding Julie, making him yell in surprise, and making her shriek and close her eyes. The Soc was down in a matter of seconds after Steve was done with him, and he joined me, followed by Two-Bit. Dallas was still a little far behind, and I noticed he was limping. He probably got injured in the rumble. The Soc holding the knife at Julie growled but smirked.

"I knew you would play dirty. That game can be played at two, you know." he said, and then everything happened in slow motion. Darry tackled the Soc, but before he could reach him, the Soc stabbed Julie's left shoulder with incredible force, making her scream in pain. Darry punched the Soc in the face, knocking him unconscious right there.

Out of my daze, I ran and knelt next to Julie. She was shaking uncontrollably and she was crying, her tears streaking down her soft face to land on the grass.

"Julie, are you alright?" I told her, and she shook her head. I guess the whole knife thing was new to her, and it would leave a scar. I curled my fingers around the handle of the knife and looked at her in the eye.

"I'm gonna pull it off now, ok? I'm gonna go slowly and steadily to make sure it doesn't hurt you too much, ok? Hold your breath." I instructed, and she nodded, doing as I told her. As she held her breath, I carefully pulled the knife out of her shoulder and when it was completely out, I threw it on the grass, far from us. She cried out in pain but stopped shaking, trying to calm down. I ripped one of the Socs' shirt off of him and balled it, applying it on her shoulder to stop the bleeding.

"Sodapop, we gotta help Ponyboy!" Johnny yelled, and my blood ran cold again. I had forgotten about my baby brother, trying to help Julie. Darry wanted to ask what he was talking about, but before he could, he spotted Ponyboy on the ground and rushed to help him, Dallas by his side. Steve and Two-Bit stayed with me. As Julie looked at Ponyboy, I realized something: she wasn't scared of the Socs, nor was she scared for her shoulder; she was scared for Ponyboy. She was crying; she didn't know if he was ok. And she was trying to act brave for us, but I knew it was hard, for she had never experienced anything like this back in 2014.

"Julie, sshhh, Ponyboy is going to be fine. Don't worry about him; we're gonna get the two of you to the hospital, and then you'll both be alright, ok?" I whispered to her, and finally she nodded, slowly closing her eyes. I panicked; for a second I thought she was passing out because of blood loss, but I realized that the struggle and everything must have tired her. She drifted off to sleep, and slowly, I picked her up, scooping her up with one arm under her bent legs and the other around her back; just like Darry did with Ponyboy.

"Steve, start the truck. Two-Bit, Dallas, Johnny, if you wanna come too, you're gonna use Two-Bit's car, with Steve. I gotta rush with Ponyboy and Julie to the hospital." he explained, and with that said, the truck was started, and Steve helped me with Julie, while Darry put Ponyboy on the seat next to him. I sat in the back, watching Julie.

I sighed. I knew it was gonna be a long night.


	9. Chapter 8: The Hospital

**OMG you guys! I'm so sorry!**

**I've been so busy with projects and that musical at school that I haven't noticed that time flew so fast! Anyway, I have no reason, no excuse not to update.**

**Note: This chapter will have several POVs, including Darry, Johnny and Julie. There will also be A LOT of dialog, and again you might think that Sodapop is a little OOC. I hope nothing of this will ruin the chapter.**

**The first POV will be Darry's, and I will tell you when it changes. Review, please?**

* * *

It didn't take too long to drive to the hospital, considering I was trying my best not to get arrested for speeding. I knew there were gonna be two hospital bills to take care of, and we couldn't afford adding a speed ticket to it, even though I knew the gang would try to help, but I wouldn't accept it anyway.

When I finally parked the car, we hopped off in a flash, me carrying Ponyboy in my arms and Sodapop carrying Julie in his arms. I caught a glimpse of the gang as Two-Bit parked the car in a hurry, but right now my main concern was to get both the youngest members of the gang inside the hospital and make sure they were ok.

As I ran toward the receptionist's desk, she saw us and called for several nurses. In a matter of seconds, my baby brother and his girlfriend were loaded on stretchers and brought in different rooms. They brought Julie to do surgery and Ponyboy to a normal room. I sighed, my breath becoming even again. I hadn't realized that my heart was racing. I think I didn't even bother paying attention to myself, even though I knew I had a couple of bruises form the rumble. Right now, it just wasn't important.

I sat down on one of the chairs, and Soda shakily sat down next to me. I held him closer as he choked, trying hard not to bawl his eyes out. I knew that he wasn't scared of the Socs, or scared for himself, but he was terrified of what the Socs had done to Ponyboy and Julie. It had shocked me too. I gently stroke Sodapop's golden hair.

"Sshhh, Soda, it's ok, they're gonna be fine..." I whispered, but he shook his head.

"I just can't believe the Socs would do something like that. It...It scared Julie shitless. And it scared me too. And Pony. But...But it terrified her. We couldn't even help her, and...and she had to watch us get beat up, and she couldn't even move, or else they would c-cut her, and..." he said, and then he sobbed. I held him closer as he kept talking, his voice cracking. "And then she was looking at me crying, and I saw that Ponyboy was out cold, and...we beat them Socs real good after that, but...then you guys came, and you know the rest..." he said, and I nodded.

"Get some rest, Soda. You oughta be awfully tired. Get some sleep, and I'll wake you up as soon as I get some news of one of them, alright?" I whispered, and Sodapop nodded, closing his eyes. His breath became silent, and I knew that he was fast asleep already.

I hadn't acknowledged the guys' presence until Johnny spoke up.

"Hey, Darry, I...I'm sorry I couldn't help, I..." he started, but I cut him off.

"You did good, Johnny. Soda said so. You fought well, and you tried helping Ponyboy, and you did your best. Don't get worked up because of what happened, alright? Get some sleep, too. You'll need it." I told him. He looked hesitant.

"Promise?" he asked. The voice he had used to ask that and the face he made reminded me of a 7 year old instead of a 16 year old. I gave him a warm smile.

"I promise, Johnny. Get some sleep, now." I told him, and with that said, he leaned on Dally's shoulder and fell asleep as fast as Soda did. I told the rest of the gang that they could leave if they wanted; after all, they weren't involved in that fight like Soda and Johnny. They refused, saying I should get some sleep too, and that they wouldn't move from their seats. I inwardly sighed, but honestly, I was glad they were staying. Steve would be better at helping Soda and Dallas would help Johnny. I closed my eyes and let sleep wash over me.

* * *

I looked at the clock and read 2 o'clock in the morning. I had just woken up from sleeping on a chair in the waiting room. I wasn't any less tired than before. My worried side was taking over my tired one. Just when I looked at the room Ponyboy was in, the doctor walked out his door and walked toward us.

"Family of Ponyboy Curtis?" he asked me as I got up.

"Yes, sir. Darrel Curtis, oldest brother and legal guardian." I said, presenting myself. He nodded.

"Is he gonna be alright?" asked Sodapop, who just woke up. The doctor pointed him with his chin, as if to ask who he was.

"He is my other little brother, Sodapop Curtis." I said, presenting my brother. He nodded again.

"Yes, he is going to be alright. He has a couple of bruises on his abdomen, which are probably the worst bruises he has, and they aren't troublesome. He has no cuts, but he also has a concussion, which I suggest you be careful with him. That means no hair ruffling for a couple of days if you do ruffle his hair, and make sure he doesn't sleep for 24 hours." he explained, and I sighed with relief. I heard the guys sigh too.

"What about Julie?" asked Johnny, and the doctor looked at him curiously.

"We also came here with a girl named Julie LaPointe, sir." I explained, and he mumbled a quiet: "Oh, right."

"Are you her family?" he asked the gang, and Two-Bit nodded.

"Yeah, we're cousins." he said, and the doctor seemed to hesitate.

"Where are your parents and her parents?" he asked.

"Our parents are dead, sir, and her parents are gone for the month, so we're taking care of her." I said, and he slightly nodded.

"I'm sorry." he said. I shook my head.

"No need to be." I replied, and gave a small smile. The doctor smiled back.

"Well, Julie's left wrist is sprained, but that's nothing compared to her shoulder wound. Fortunately it wasn't deep enough, and she hasn't lost too much blood, so she's fine. I'm willing to bet that she hasn't passed out because of her wound." he guessed, and I shook my head.

"No, she passed out form exhaustion." I explained, and the doctor nodded.

"Alright, then. Anyway, right now she's still asleep. She isn't aware of going in surgery, so when she wakes up, let me, or a nurse, know. We will give her pain medicine. Apart form that, she's doing just fine." he explained. I sighed with relief; none of them were hurt. He then motioned for all of us to follow him, and we stopped in front of Ponyboy's room.

"Immediate family, only. He is awake, so make sure he doesn't fall asleep." the doctor told me and Sodapop. We both nodded and stepped inside while the doctor leaded the gang to Julie's room.

"Hey, Pone!" cheerfully called Soda. Ponyboy smiled.

"Hey Soda, hey Darry." he said. I walked toward him and hugged him lightly, making sure I didn't hurt him.

"How are you, little buddy?" I asked, and his smile faded.

"I'm fine, I just have this headache, and my stomach hurts." he mumbled, and I nodded.

"You have a concussion, and you have a couple of bruises on your abdomen. It's nothing major, the doctor said, so you'll be able to come back home tomorrow. You'll have to stay the night here, just so they can make sure you're fine." I explained, and he nodded.

"What about Julie? he asked, and I shook my head.

"When you passed out she was crying and then Darry and the rest of the gang came from behind the Socs who were holding Julie and Steve tackled the one holding her, and then Darry tackled the other one but before he could, the Soc stabbed her on her left shoulder. She passed out from exhaustion and worry." Soda explained, and Ponyboy gasped.

"They...stabbed her?" he asked worriedly. I nodded.

"Yeah, I'm sorry to tell you this, but she isn't awake up yet. The gang is going to see her." I said.

"Can I see her too?" he asked me with pleading eyes, and I shook my head. He looked down, sad.

"I'm sorry little bro, but you gotta get some rest. I promise I'll take you to see her tomorrow. No doubt she'll stay a day or two here." I said, and hesitantly, he nodded. Sodapop hugged him and laid his head on his little brother's chest, making sure he wouldn't hurt him. Soon, both of them fell asleep. I watched them, thankful that they weren't badly hurt. It could have been way worse than that, and I was glad it wasn't.

* * *

Two-Bit, Steve, Dally and I walked toward Julie's room, following a nurse. When we stepped inside Julie's room, I noticed that she was restlessly sleeping, a faint frown on her face and there was sweat on her forehead. I noticed the bandage on her shoulder, and I gulped. Other than that, she looked fine, though, but I bet she got awfully scared tonight.

"Man, they sure got to her." whispered Two-Bit. I nodded.

"Yeah, I sure hope she's gonna be fine." I said. "Plus, it's my fault..." I mumbled, and instantly Dally put his hand back on my shoulder, twirled me around so I would face him, and lifted my chin so I would look at him in the eye.

"Listen, kid, it wasn't your fault. These damn Socs are gonna pay. But you did good, Johnnycakes, you did good. You did your best to protect Ponyboy, and you knocked that Soc right on the ground! You couldn't do anything else." He said, and I eventually agreed with him. I nodded and he let go of my chin so I could look back at Julie. Just when I started toward the door, I saw Two-Bit's face. He was looking at Julie with a smile. I looked at her and smiled too.

"Hey, Julie. I'm glad you're awake." I said as I brought a chair next to the hospital bed and sat.

"Hey…" she croaked and then smiled. However, her smile faded in a second.

"Where's…Ponyboy…?" she asked, a worried look on her face.

"He's in another room, Julie. He's fine… just shook up a little. He's worried about _you_, though." I told her, and slowly, she nodded, fighting off tears.

"I'm sorry…I got you in…this mess…" she whispered, a few tears escaping her hazel eyes.

"Nothing's your fault. You don't have to be sorry about anything. Shit happened, and we're all fine, and we pounded them Socs real good, and everything's fine now..." I said, but she shook her head.

"No, I... They caught me and threatened me and told me they would hurt me if I called for help, and, and...and he stabbed me when the other one let go and... Pony got knocked out and Soda almost got knocked out too and..." she said, but Dally put his hand in front of her mouth. She proceeded to scream, but it was muffled by Dally's hand. _Not the best way of shutting someone up_, I thought, _but it works. _

"Listen to me, kid. Ponyboy's fine. Sodapop's fine too. We're all fine. Like Johnny said, shit happens, and we're used to it. You're not, but we're here for ya. Nothing's your fault, so stop blabbering about how it is, or stop feeling bad about it. Got it?" he told her, rather harshly, but I guess it's what she needed. Slowly she nodded, finally letting our words sink in her head. I noticed she looked tired. She must have gotten herself worked up over the situation. She was about to talk, but Two-Bit cut her off.

"Hush, kid. You need to rest. You got worked up tonight, and you need to lie down and rest for a while. Pony n' the rest of us will visit you tomorrow, when you wake up, alright?" he said, and again she nodded. Then she closed her eyes and let sleep take over her worn out body. Wordlessly, the gang and I walked back to the waiting room and we did what the room was made for; wait. We waited for Darry and Soda, and we waited for more news of our two youngest friends.

* * *

I was jerked awake from a scream. Ponyboy. Instantly I got up from the uncomfortable chair I sat and slept on and took Ponyboy's hand and griped his shoulder.

"Ponyboy! Calm down, kid, calm down! It's gonna be ok, it's just a dream, nothing's real, you gotta calm down!" I kept pleading, but when he felt my grip on his hand and his shoulder, he trashed on the hospital bed to get free and kept crying out.

"No! Please! Let me go! I didn't do anything, I swear! Please!" he kept screaming. I noticed he was starting to hyperventilate; I had to calm him down! Just then, I heard a couple of nurses' footsteps as they came running in the room, panicked.

"What's going on?!" one of them half-asked half-screamed and I looked at her worriedly.

"Nightmare. He needs to calm down now!" I answered, and she took a needle. She injected something in Ponyboy's arm, and in a matter of seconds, he had stopped struggling against me. It was probably a sedative. Whatever it was, Ponyboy was way calmer than a few seconds before, but he was whimpering, holding on to me.

"I don't want them to hurt me again..." he whispered, and half a second later, his body went limp. He had fallen asleep again. I stepped out of the room, followed by a shaken Sodapop, who had watched everything without doing anything, which was odd considering he was usually the first one to help Ponyboy. I noticed that he looked shocked.

"You ok, Soda?" I asked, and he hesitantly nodded. "C'mere." I told him, and hugged him tightly. I stroke his hair as he silently cried. He was trying to stay strong for Ponyboy, but he was having a hard time. Heck, so was I. That nightmare probably was his worst one yet, and I didn't think I had helped him enough.

"Yeah, 'm fine, Dar." he mumbled, his voice half-muffled by my chest. I hugged him tighter and I heard him sob. I took him by his bicept and I brought him back to the waiting room with Steve, and soon he fell asleep again. It wasn't long after that that I fell asleep too.

* * *

I woke up to a hard pounding in my head. At first I thought someone was actually knocking my head clean on a wall or something, but as I gained vision again, I realized I was still in the hospital bed, and I only had a headache. Make that; a killer headache.

I groaned as I sat up and looked around. I noticed that the room was in broad daylight, so it must be morning. I then heard a sound that made my heart want to jump miles from here, and I turned around. The guys were walking in my room, Ponyboy getting wheeled on a wheelchair. I sighed with relief as I turned on the bed so I could face them.

"Hey Julie!" Ponyboy cheerfully called, and smiled. I smiled back.

"Hey Ponyboy." I replied. He wheeled his way toward the hospital bed and took my left hand without really moving my shoulder, so it wouldn't hurt.

"So, how are you feeling?" he asked me.

"Uh, I'm tired, and my shoulder kinda hurts but I bet that it's normal, and I have this killer headache. But apart from that, I'm fine", I explained, then asked, "how about you?" He shrugged.

"I guess I'm fine. I have this killer headache too, but I'll manage. I got signed out of the hospital now, so that means I can go home!" he said and smiled. I giggled at the expression on his face but I stopped. "What's wrong?" he asked. I sighed.

"When can I go with you guys?" I asked, and this time, Darry sighed.

"I don't know kid. I can talk to the receptionist, see if she can check you out too, but if she can't, you'll have to stay here until tomorrow. I'll see what I can do." he answered and walked out the door. I then turned to Johnny.

"How about you, Johnny? Are you ok?" I asked, and he smiled.

"Yeah, I'm fine." he answered. I knew that Johnny was the quiet guy of the gang, so I didn't ask him any other questions. I turned to Sodapop.

"And you, Soda?" I asked, and slowly he nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just tired, is all. You n' Ponyboy... You guys scared me shitless. I'm sorry for not being fast enough to protect ya." he shyly said.

"Man, cut it out already. None of it was your fault. Y'know what? If you wouldn't have stayed with them at home, and if Johnny would have come with us, Ponyboy and Julie would be much worse. You took the right decision, and there's no turning back now, so don't get worked up again. Ya dig?" Steve told him, and he nodded.

"Yeah, man, I dig." he said and grinned his fabulous grin, which made me grin too. Then, my grin faded.

"Hey, Ponyboy?" I said, and he curiously looked at me.

"Yeah, Julie?" he replied.

"Is there a mirror somewhere?" I asked, and Two-Bit came out of the bathroom with one. I looked at my reflection and gasped.

"Jesus Christ, how in the hell did my hair get so messed up?!" I exclaimed, and the gang laughed. I kept saying: "I'm serious, look at me!", but eventually I laughed with them.

"Man, kid, that is one expression I shoulda taken a picture of!" claimed Two-Bit, and since he was close to me, I managed to nudge him with my right elbow on his stomach. Ponyboy howled with laughter and I noticed that he was laughing so much that he cried.

"S-Stop it, you guys... I'm gonna pee in my pants..." he said and started laughing again. Then, Darry walked in the room with a nurse. He was smiling but he curiously frowned.

"What's going on?" he asked. By now, I could barely breathe, I was laughing so much and Ponyboy too. Even Dallas was chuckling, and Johnny was silently laughing. Steve wasn't hiding his grin, but Two-Bit was practically laughing as loud as us.

"Let's just say that Julie can't wait to leave the hospital." Sodapop claimed, and I laughed even more.

"I-I-I can't b-breathe, guys…" I found the strength to say between laughter. Ponyboy's tears were freely flowing on his face; he was laughing so hard, he didn't bother to wipe them.

Finally, after a couple of minutes, we all managed to calm down. The nurse almost gave us sedatives to calm down and stop laughing, but I was tired already, so I figured it wouldn't have helped.

"Alright, Julie, you can go home now." the nurse said, and I nearly shouted "Yes!" before hoping out of bed. My sudden movement made me dizzy as I sat back to regain balance, and as soon as I could see straight, I laughed, and the guys joined me.

Man, I think that had to be the best recovery ever.

* * *

**OMG *o* My longest chapter! 3 600 words (with the author's note in the beginning and in the end...)**

**P.-s.: From now on I'm gonna tell how many words I have written in my chapters. Also...:**

**Intro: 1 678 words (my shortest)**

**Ch 1: 2 145 words**

**Ch 2: 2 680 words**

**Ch 3: 3 011 words**

**Ch 4: 2 104 words**

**Ch 5: 2 949 words**

**Ch 6: 2 200 words**

**Ch7 : 2 171 words**

**So, you probably noticed that my chapters are all above 2k words, so I apologize if you think that it's too long, but I'm really, really proud of myself for the work! I honestly hope you like it!**


	10. Chapter 9: House Arrest

**This chapter will be in Ponyboy's POV.**

**P.-s.: I have the no-reviewers disease! You're the only cure! R & R (please? D:)**

* * *

Patients were to get wheeled to the car (or truck, in our case), so Julie and I were wheeled back to Darry's truck. I could tell Julie hated hospitals just like I did. Who liked it, anyway?

The ride home was silent. Darry was taking a few glances at us from time to time, while Soda (riding shotgun) was staring outside. I knew for a fact that my brother was eager to get home, for he didn't like to sit still for long.

When we got home, the guys were already there, waiting for us. Well, Steve and Two-Bit were. I asked for Johnny, and Steve told me that he was inside. I took Julie's hand and dragged her inside with me. The guys stayed in front of the porch, probably wanting to talk about my and Julie's condition.

"Hey Pone, hey Julie." greeted Johnny. I smiled at my best friend.

"Hey Johnnycakes." I replied. Julie smiled, holding laughter.

"Johnnycakes?" she curiously asked. I nodded.

"Yep, it goes from a long time ago, when Johnny and I were 6 and 8 years old respectively."

Flash-back

_Little 6 year old Ponyboy was talking to an 8 year old boy in the park. They had just met, and Mrs. Curtis was talking to Mrs. Cade. Both families had noticed that they lived close to each other._

_"What's your name?" the 8 year old boy asked._

_"My name is Ponyboy Curtis..." Ponyboy said, ashamed of his name. The boy smiled._

_"That's a cool name! I never heard of it. It's unique!" the boy claimed. Ponyboy smiled._

_"What's yours?" he asked the boy._

_"My name is Johnny Cade." the boy proudly answered. Ponyboy gasped._

_"Johnnycakes? Your name is Johnnycakes? That's so awesome! You have cakes in your name!" Ponyboy excitedly shouted. At first, the boy felt insulted, but then he laughed. He laughed even more as Ponyboy rushed to his mother._

_"Mommy! Guess what! My friend's name is Johnnycakes! It's cool, uh?" Ponyboy shouted to his mother and she laughed._

_"Yes, hun, it is." her mother told him. Mrs. Cade smiled._

_"Johnnycakes, uh?" she asked with a hint of amusement in her voice. By now, the boy had joined the two mothers and Ponyboy._

_"Honey, his name is Johnny Cade, not Johnnycakes." her mother had told him. Ponyboy had pouted at her remark._

_"But mommy, I think Johnnycakes is a cool name!" he had replied, and again she had laughed. The boy had turned around to face him._

_"Then you can call me Johnnycakes if you want to, I don't mind." the boy said. Ponyboy clapped his hands, giggling. Both mothers had smiled._

_The rest of the day, the two boys had played. Year after year, the name "Johnnycakes" had been used, first by Ponyboy, then by Sodapop and even Steve, and then by Two-Bit, Darry and Dallas._

End of flash-back

"We still call him that sometimes, but we're all grown up now, so we don't use it often anymore. But when we were still little kids, we liked calling him like that." I explained to Julie. She smiled.

"How sweet! It is a cute name." she said, giggling. Johnny and I giggled too. Just then, Dally walked in the living room and stood next to the couch where we were all sitting. Soon, Sodapop, Steve and Two-Bit walked in the living room too and sat on the floor. I heard a truck engine and watched by the window as I saw Darry leaving.

"Hey Soda, where's Darry going?" I asked my brother. He shrugged.

"Beats me. Said something about meetin the Shepard's." he answered.

"Who are the Shepard's?" asked Julie.

"A Greaser gang, just like ours, except they're more dangerous. We can't tell the difference between Greaser and hood in their gang, and we never mess with them." I explained. She simply nodded. The living room stayed silent for a few minutes; nobody knew what to say to break the silence.

Just them, I saw Darry's truck as he parked it. He walked toward the door and opened it while walking inside, closing it behind him. He then walked in here in the living room, sighed, and sat on the recliner.

"What is it, Dar?" I asked.

"Curly got hurt pretty badly. He's in a coma right now. Tim's blowing a gasket; swears he's gonna kill those Socs." Darry said. I gasped. Curly, in a coma?

"Who's Curly?" Julie asked.

"He's...he's one of the Shepard's. Tim is the leader of the gang, and Curly is his younger brother." answered Darry. He then added, "He's also one of Pony's friends although they're really different. While Pony never touches beer or drugs, Curly can get stoned and drunk the minute he has the chance to. He's been to juvenile prison many times, but if I catch Pony there one time, he's gonna be thrown into a boys' home for sure."

"Oh... well, I hope he's gonna be okay." said Julie. I nodded, thinking the same thing, only I didn't say it out loud.

"Curly's a tough kid, he's gonna be fine." confidently said Steve. I knew for a fact that Steve could be worried about Curly, but he's probably one of the toughest of the gang and therefore, hides his true emotions better. That's why I think he can be smart when he wants to. He's still a jackass to me, but that won't ever change. Darry turned toward Julie and me.

"I don't want you two to walk alone after school tomorrow. Get a ride from Steve or Two-Bit, but don't walk. And you're not allowed to go out. I bet the Socs are mad that we won, and they'll try to jump the younger and weakest Greasers; namely, you two. I want you to stay in the house." said Darry. I couldn't believe what he said. Not allowed to leave the house, even on weekends? That's just unfair!

"In other words, Pone, we're putting you in house arrest." said Sodapop.

"But that's not fair! How come you get to go out, uh? How come I have to stay here?!" I complained. I knew I sounded like a 7 year old kid instead of a 14 year old one, but I could care less. I didn't want to be cooped up in my house all day long!

"Listen, Ponyboy, it's not like we want to keep you in here all day, but we don't have a choice. For once I agree with Darry; it's too dangerous to walk by your lonesome, even if you walk with Julie. The Socs are gonna look for younger Greasers like you. I have a feeling they didn't like the fact that you weren't alone when they came here during the rumble. In fact, if I hadn't been there, you guys could be just like Curly." Sodapop said. I gulped. What he said was true, but it still made me mad.

"Can't we at least go outside? On the front porch, in the backyard, as long as we stay near the house?" I whined. Darry shook his head.

"No, Ponyboy. They're gonna try and get you right near this house, if they have to. You gotta stay here and watch your backs at school. Especially when you're in the higher level classes full of Socs." Darry said. I sighed. Then, I felt Julie's hand grip mine. I looked at her.

"It's okay, Ponyboy. I understand what they mean." she said, and then she got up. With a small, subtle motion of her hand, she motioned me to follow her, and that's what I did.

When we got to Julie's room, she walked inside and dropped on her bed, face first, and I heard her sigh. She then turned around and lied on her back while motioning me to lie with her. I lied next to her on the bed, and we both looked at the ceiling. Not interesting, but hey, we had nothing to do.

"What are we gonna do now, Ponyboy?" she asked me, breaking the silence. I shrugged.

"I don't know for now, Julie. We have to go to school Monday; hopefully the Socs will leave us alone." I said, trying my best to reassure her. I had trouble believing they would leave us alone myself, but I could at least try to make her feel better.

I watched her out of the corner of my eyes and noticed that she was close to tears. "Are you crying?" I asked. She merely shrugged. I lifted her and wrapped my arm around her waist, pulling her body closer to mine. She cuddled me as she spoke.

"Ponyboy, you're only 14. _We_'re only 14. Yet you went through two times more bad stuff than I did. It just isn't fair. I just can't believe that you can live through this. I know I couldn't…" she whispered. I wiped the tears off her face with the back of my hand and looked at her in the eye.

"Julie, hush. It's okay. I lived through it for 14 years, and I could live through it for 14 more, and more than that. Sometimes it is hard, harder than anyone could think. I'm just glad that, of all the people in the world, I found you…" I told her as her eyes sparkled with happiness.

"You really mean it…?" she told me. I smiled.

"Of course I mean it, Julie. I really am happy. Happy that I have met you. We have a lot in common, and we both understand each other very well, and you helped me realize that there are people in the world who care for others. I know that I can rely on you, and I sure hope you can rely on me. I haven't been of any help to you so far, but yet you understood and you stayed, and I couldn't be happier." I told her.

"But Ponyboy…You helped me a lot too. You showed me how unfair life can be, and how lucky I actually am, and how to enjoy what you have in life. You understand each and every thing about what I tell you, and _I _couldn't be happier." she said, which made me smile.

"Is there a way to make you happier, Julie?" I asked her. She smiled back.

"Yes, there is. Tell me that you love me." she said.

"I love you, Julie, and I always will." I told her, and with that said, I kissed her on the lips, gently at first, then demanding more. After a couple of seconds, we sadly separated, but we stayed on the bed, cuddling, until we both fell asleep.

* * *

After Ponyboy and Julie left, Steve and Dally left as well. We kinda stayed silent after that. I knew that my younger brother would _hate _our decision, but right now I felt like it was the best. I also knew that we had no right to make decisions for Julie, but she was living with us for now, and I rather wanted her safe than hurt again. After all, those Socs did a number on her… I knew she would never forget them. But I also knew that she would never forget _us_.

Just then, I heard Darry sigh. I knew what he was thinking.

"Listen, Dar… we did the right thing." I told him, and again he sighed.

"I know Sodapop, but I still feel like we coulda done something." he replied. I'm the one who sighed.

"Coulda, shoulda, woulda. There are endless: "what if's", and they won't bring us anywhere, either. So let's stop thinking about that and focus on keeping Ponyboy and Julie safe." I said, which made Darry agree with me. _Finally_, I thought to myself, hoping I didn't say it out loud. I probably didn't since Darry wasn't looking at me, and neither was Two-Bit and Johnny, who had chosen to stay. Then, I realized that it had been a while since Ponyboy and Julie left. Where were they?

"Hey, any of you seen where Ponyboy and Julie headed off too?" I asked the boys.

"They better not have left the house…" Darry muttered.

"I saw them heading toward the rooms." Johnny said. Two-Bit chuckled.

"I bet they're making out right now!" he said, and Johnny looked at him with a disgusting look, which made me laugh. Darry grunted.

"I'm gonna check on 'em, make sure they're not doing what Two-Bit said they are." he said, which made me laugh even more.

A couple of seconds passed in silence. Then, all I heard was a shriek and laughter, and the next thing I know, Ponyboy was chasing Darry in the backyard, his face red. Julie walked out of her bedroom, trying to steady herself since she was laughing so hard she couldn't stand right. Her face was red too. I chuckled.

"Tsk tsk, did Darry catch you two making out?" I asked as Two-Bit howled with laughter at her expression. It was pure disgust.

"EW, of course not!" she shouted, and we all laughed, even quiet Johnny, who was still a little shy, but apparently a lot less since he met Julie. The gang got closer thanks to her, and I'm grateful that we met her. Even Dally and Steve seem to enjoy her company, which is unusual, since Steve only hangs around Evie, and Dally is s'posed to be mean and tough, but he's actually trying to be nice around Julie.

Anyway, as I looked for Darry and Ponyboy outside, I heard another shriek, and watched by the window as Darry put Ponyboy in a head lock, ruffling his hair and tickling him while Ponyboy laughed and struggled against Darry's grip. I chuckled, knowing he would never be able to break free from Darry.

I turned, bolting toward the couch and I grabbed Julie by her waist, lifting her in the air and dropping her on my shoulder, making sure she didn't fall as I ran outside toward my two brothers. She shrieked and laughed, her face bright red as she saw Ponyboy's face. Then, I heard another shriek, and noticed that strangely, Two-Bit was dragging Johnny outside, having pulled him in a headlock just like Darry did with Ponyboy, and our quietest Greaser was struggling and laughing too.

When it started to get dark was a sign that we had been there for hours, playing, laughing, and mostly tickling the youngest members of the gang, even though they got their revenge. We finally got up, Ponyboy helping Julie up by taking her hand and pulling her with him as he stood. They both helped Johnny, and Two-Bit even tried to pull him back on the ground, but he ended up face-first on the ground, getting a mouthful of dirt. We laughed as he got up and chased us back to the house.

When we got inside, Darry was already there and he was cooking. It was supposed to be Ponyboy's turn, but I think Ponyboy deserved the break. We also didn't want to give that chore to Julie; after all, she was our guest, not our sister, although we loved her as if she was our sister. The only thing is that it would be hard to leave her once she has to go to her own timeline. Heck, it's understandable that she can't stay here forever, but she's still our friend, our sister, the girl of the gang, and we'll all miss her awfully.

I looked by the window and watched as Julie cuddled Ponyboy, both looking at the sunset. I never understood why Pony did dig sunsets so much, but I tried to, and tonight, I think I finally understood. I watched it too as I stood next to Ponyboy, my hand on his shoulder. I also noticed in the corner of my eye that Darry was watching us, and he joined us merely seconds later. He stood next to Julie, putting his hand on her shoulder, just like I did with Ponyboy.

And to say that Two-Bit was in the bathroom, missing this memorable family moment.

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**2 830 words.**

**Is that a good enough excuse to review? c:**


	11. Chapter 10: Discovering Talent

**This chapter will completely be in Julie's POV. Not much dialogue in this one, although there will be a little.**

**Note: I'm sorry I didn't update these few days. We've been planning my grandfather's burial, who**** passed away on February 1st, two weeks before I started posting my fanfics on this site. I think I could thank him, for I love this site, I love writing, and I know that right now, he's backing me up and making sure I'm taking the right decisions to achieve my dreams. :) A special thank you to you, grandpa. **

* * *

I woke up by myself the next morning, feeling groggy. My left shoulder was sore, just like my left wrist, but it was something I could bear easily. I still had a headache, but it was growing faint, so that I could handle too. The only thing truly bothering me was my vision. No matter how many times I rubbed my eyes to see better, my vision got blurry in a second. I groaned as I sat up, getting ready for another school week.

I rubbed my eyes for five more minutes before I could finally see clearly, and when I did, I noticed it was still dark outside, but there was a faint light in the horizon. _Sunrise_, I thought. I had never seen one like I had seen the sunsets here, and since I figured it was still too early to get ready for school, and since I had nothing to do, I got up.

I changed in my dark blue skinny jeans and my black medium-length sleeved shirt, and took out my purple scarf. _Oh well_, I thought again; _whether they think it's an accessory or not, I'm gonna wear it_. I put on black socks and my black boots and I brushed my hair (which was curly) back in a messed-up bun, which was fine by me.

I walked to the bathroom, careful of not making any sound to wake up the Curtis brothers, and when I got in the bathroom, I brushed my teeth and washed my face carefully. When I was done, I walked out of the bathroom and toward the front door, putting on my coat and stepping outside. I sat on the front porch and watched the beautiful shades the sky took as the sun appeared, taking its time, making its appearance for the day.

I heard the front door open and close and then someone sat next to me.

"Hey, Julie, what are you doing so early?" asked Ponyboy. I shrugged.

"I woke up and I noticed it was early, and I knew I couldn't get back to sleep, so I prepared and came here to watch the sunrise." I said. He smiled.

"I used to do that the mornings I felt like waking up early." he said as he watched it with me.

"I never watched the sunrises, much less the sunsets. Sometimes it's just 'cause I didn't have the time to." I sadly said. He shrugged.

"Y'know, it's rare to see a sunset-loving Greaser here, yet it exists." he said. I grinned and playfully nudged him on his arm.

"Yeah, you exist." I said, and he chuckled. He wrapped his arm around me and pulled me closer to him, being careful with my shoulder. I leaned my head against his shoulder as I closed my eyes to think. From what I had seen-or heard- the past week, it _was _rare to see a sunset-loving Greaser. Greasers were supposed to be tough, and cold, and emotionless. Ponyboy didn't fit that description at all; in fact, he was the complete opposite.

Ponyboy _was_ tough, but in a whole different meaning. The Greasers' kind of tough means that they don't let themselves get beaten up by the Socs easily; in fact, they beat the Socs before the Socs can beat them. Ponyboy's kind of tough was that with all the emotions and drama and all that happened, he managed through it without much difficulty, and that was amazing, in my opinion. He was also kind to people; he wouldn't hurt a fly unless he had to.

You also never heard much of an artistic and smart Greaser; yet again, Ponyboy defied those odds. He was very smart; the kind of smart that made him skip a grade. He was very artistic; the kind of artistic that got his head in the clouds more times that he could count, the kind of artistic that didn't require lessons, that came naturally. Then it reminded me that he had never seen my drawings before, but he had shown me his sketch of my face, which I had memorized forever.

"Hey, Ponyboy?" I said, capturing his attention.

"Mh?" he mumbled.

"I have something I need to show you." I said. He smiled.

"Oh yeah? Then show me." He requested. I smiled and shook my head.

"When we get back from school." I said. I laughed as he childishly pouted, then showed his crooked grin. He got up and handed me his hand to help me up. I took it and hoisted myself off the front porch's steps to stand, and he dragged me back inside. Darry and Sodapop were awake and getting ready for work, which reminded me that I had to eat something before going to school.

I walked in the kitchen and grabbed the bread, taking two slices and putting them in the toaster. I waited until they were done and when they popped out of the toaster, I grabbed them and applied butter. I ate them, taking my time since apart from eating, I was ready and set for school. I just didn't feel like eating chocolate cake for breakfast like the Curtis brothers did, anyway.

"Hey Julie, s'there anything wrong?" asked Sodapop, who was eating his piece of chocolate cake, like his habit made him do.

"No, nothing." I lied. Truth was, I was terrified of the Socs. I just didn't want them to bother me. Heck, I didn't even want to see them, yet I still had to, being in their classes.

"Y'know, I'm sure the Socs won't try to hurt you, t'least not today." Sodapop said, as if reading my exact thoughts. He added, "Plus, if they get near you, we asked the other Greasers if they could watch from a distance. So if the Socs _do_ try to hurt to you, tease you in some way or another, we're gonna make sure they just don't do it again. Got it?" I nodded. He then added, turning to Ponyboy, "Same goes for you, Pone." Ponyboy mumbled something that sounded like: "Yeah, Soda" and finished drinking his chocolate milk. How they could eat and drink so much chocolate was beyond me.

I stepped inside my room and grabbed my toothbrush and toothpaste again, and walked to the bathroom. When I was done brushing my teeth, I brought back my toothbrush and toothpaste in my room, grabbing my school bag. We were almost ready to go; we just had to wait for Two-Bit, Steve and Johnny to show up.

As if on cue of my thoughts, the boys barged in the house, the only one quiet being Johnny. Two-Bit slammed the door shut for the thousandth time as he stepped inside, grinning as usual. What I noticed is that Steve wasn't inside; Two-Bit had slammed the door shut right in his face. The door opened again, revealing Steve, who was clutching his nose and mumbling a few curses. I stepped outside, not really in the mood to hear Steve's curse and Two-Bit's replies. Surprisingly Johnny followed me outside.

"Oh, hi Johnny." I said.

"Hey Julie." he replied.

"Something you wanna tell me?" I asked. He shrugged.

"Nah, figured I would talk to ya a little." He answered, which made me smile. Ponyboy chose that time to join us.

"Hey Johnnycakes, you flirtin with my girl?" he asked, his tone however not accusatory. Johnny instantly shook his head, but not before turning red.

"No, no I wasn't..." he stuttered, but Ponyboy grinned, giving him a friendly pat on his shoulder.

"Was just jokin, Johnny." Pony said. He was about to sit next to me, but Two-Bit and Steve walked out of the house, Steve having a pissed off look and Two-Bit laughing. Johnny and I got up and followed them to Steve's car. Steve started it and off we went to school for another week.

* * *

The morning passed by slowly, _painfully_ slowly. The teachers had nothing interesting to teach us-they actually never had anything interesting to teach us-, only last week's subject. The English teacher, Mr. Syme, gave us an assignment; we had to write something, anything, and make it a theme. Frankly I loved writing, but I'm a poem writer, and I only write when I have inspiration or a good subject in mind.

I could tell Ponyboy wasn't too thrilled. We both probably had nothing in our mind worthy enough to write it on paper.

Steve and Two-Bit waited for us in the parking lot, as usual. They informed us that Johnny had to go home; he wasn't feeling well for some reason, and Two-Bit had insisted on sending him home, to which Johnny had complied without protest.

Dinner went by fast. I didn't eat much; I wasn't feeling so good as well, but I kept my feeling hidden so I could spend more time with Ponyboy.

When we got back to school, we wasted no time as we walked to our class, hand in hand. But, just as we passed a classroom, I stopped dead in my tracks. I backed up and looked in the room through the small window. There was a piano!

Without saying a word, I grabbed the knob, twisting it so the door would open, hoping it wasn't locked first of all. It wasn't, so I slowly opened the door, making sure it didn't creak too much. Slowly but certainly, I stepped into the room, Ponyboy looking at me with an odd but curious look as he stepped in behind me.

I sat on the piano and stretched my arms, then flexed my fingers. With smoothness I was used to by now, my fingers brushed the piano's white and black keys as I played _River Flows in You _by _Yiruma_ **( ** watch?v=rhN7SG-H-3k **for those who don't know what it is) **and then I switched to Moonlight Sonata by Ludwig Van Beethoven **( ** watch?v=4Tr0otuiQuU **again for those who have no idea what it is… By the way I really know how to play both melodies but I don't know them completely and I don't always have them right...Anyway, read on!)**, smiling the whole time I did so, while Ponyboy stared at me in awe.

When I stopped, I noticed that Ponyboy was widely smiling and that a teacher had crept next to him, also watching me. I stared, my eyes wide. A teacher was listening to me the whole time, and I didn't even notice?

"Well, it sure was beautiful. Would you two mind following me to the office?" he said, and I shrugged.

"Sure, I mean, why not?" Ponyboy said, but he looked worried. I was, too. What had we done wrong? Or maybe we had done nothing wrong at all? We let the teacher escort us to the principal's office. The principal showed us the twin chairs in front of his desk, and reluctantly we sat. He was smiling.

"Ah, for the day that I have been waiting to come." he said, and Ponyboy looked at me in confusion. The principal kept talking. "So, you both play piano?" he asked us. I nodded, although I hadn't heard Ponyboy yet.

"Yes, sir." said Ponyboy. The principal nodded.

"We have been waiting for that talent to come. In fact, we have been looking for days for a student, anyone who could play piano. I have finally found someone,_ two_ students, actually, which is very good." he said. Ponyboy smirked. I could practically hear his thoughts; _Get to the point_, since I was thinking the same thing, but he wore a proud look on his face.

"I have a request for you two. I have been looking forward to this year's graduation; the school band is pretty good. _But_, but, we need a pianist to complete the graduation song. Since you two are sophomores, you will not graduate for two years and therefore, you would be free to join the band. That is, of course, if you want to." he explained. It sounded good; in fact, I bet the gang would be proud of me, and so would my mother, whenever I would get back home and share my experience. I nodded.

"Yes, it does sound good, doesn't it, Pony?" I asked Ponyboy. He smiled as he nodded, which made me smile too.

"Do you have a piano at home so you can practice?" the principal asked. Ponyboy nodded. The principal looked at me. "I can practice with him, sir." I said. He nodded. Just then, the bell rang.

"Alright, then it's settled. I want you two to meet me here at dinner tomorrow; I will give you the graduation song notes so you can practice them home. Now go to your classes; I will give you a tardy slip." He told us, and with that said, he gave us each a tardy slip and we left the office, heading to our class.

* * *

The afternoon went just as slow as the morning, but at least I was in a better mood. My English assignment completely forgotten, and my head in the clouds, I thought about the principal's request. Surely I could play piano, and I was proud of being chosen to play for graduation.

Still, uneasiness crept upon me, somehow. I had no idea if there were Socs in the school band (there probably were since I had not heard of a Greaser musician-beside Ponyboy, that is-in the school) and the students don't really know me like they know Ponyboy.

When our classes ended, we waited for Two-Bit and Steve to show up. Apparently they had been waiting for us in the parking lot, 'cause Two-Bit looked like he was looking for someone, which he was. He quickly joined us and practically dragged us to Steve's car, where was waiting a pissed off Steve in the driver's seat.

"C'mon, hop in and git going." he said, or more specifically, grumbled. We did so, not wanting to make him wait a little longer for us.

When we got to the Curtis house, Steve practically pushed us out of the car as he drove away, toward the DX station. He was probably running late for his job. Two-Bit had stayed with us. He stepped in the house, grabbed a beer and settled on the couch to watch Mickey Mouse. I didn't worry one bit; Steve almost always had a pissed off look. It just showed more when he really _was_ pissed.

Ponyboy rolled his eyes as he walked in his room, dropping his schoolbag on the ground next to his bed and getting the stuff he needed out for his homework. I did the same, only I oddly had less.

Time flew by faster than I thought as I heard the front slam shut, followed by heavy footsteps. It was probably Darry, but I didn't pay attention.

The only thing left to do was my English assignment, which could wait for a few minutes; I was getting hungry.

I stepped in the kitchen just as Ponyboy stepped out, muttering something I didn't quite understand. I figured we would talk about it at dinner, and my guess was correct.

"I got a call from the principal." said Darry. Ponyboy nodded, knowing what his oldest brother was talking about, just like I did.

"Yeah, um... We're gonna be playing piano with the school band for graduation, the both of us." I said. Sodapop grinned.

"That's awesome, guys!" Soda claimed. I smiled, naturally. But then, he added something that made me hesitate. "But um... We never heard you play."

"I..." I stuttered, "Well... There's a piano here, I can always play after we're done with dinner." I finally suggested. And that's just what I did.

Ponyboy and I took turns playing different melodies on the piano, and the gang-or most of it- listened to the both of us in awe, grins plastered on their faces, especially Sodapop, Darry, Two-Bit and Johnny, who had been invited and cared for.

The gang had discovered one of my talents, and there would be more to come. But the guys would wonder about what they could be. _They would soon find out_, I promised, in my head.

* * *

**2 896 words for this chapter. Thank you, for those who are reading and (silently) backing me up!**


	12. Chapter 11: Sick and Trouble

**Hey peeps!**

**Sorry about my long absence of almost three weeks! I've been trying to keep up with my exams and all, and my grades aren't really "plummeting" but they're falling down a little, and I've been working hard to get them back up! I also have this math exam coming next Friday and since I don't understand half of what we learned and usually can't remember the other half, I've been studying. You're lucky I can update today, but I'm doing it 'cause of my fellow readers :)**

**By the way, I've rewritten this chapter at least three times, that I can count, and it still doesn't feel perfect, but it's the best I could do. Hopefully you will like it! Tell me if you do! :)**

**This chapter will be in Darry's POV, then in Sodapop's, and finally in Ponyboy's.**

* * *

Ponyboy and Julie played for at least an hour or two before everyone-including them-got tired of hearing the sound of the instrument. I wasn't; the sound was beautiful, Ponyboy and Julie were good, but I had bills to pay and eventually I had to leave to pay them.

I walked to my room and I cornered Julie as she stepped out of the bathroom.

"Hey Julie, you guys are great. I'm glad to know that you have so much in common with Ponyboy." I said. She smiled.

"Thanks, Darry." she said. I nodded. She yawned. "Well, I think I'll go to bed right now." she said.

"So early? It's only 9." I said. She shrugged.

"I'm used to it at home. I'm getting tired, anyway. See ya." she replied, and with that said she stepped in her room and closed the door. I walked to my own room, closing the door behind me out of habit. Seconds later, there was a knock on my own door.

"Come in!" I hollered. The door slowly creaked as it opened, revealing Ponyboy. His small body stood at my door, his face betraying how exhausted he was. "What is it, Ponyboy?" I asked, concerned.

"The gang's gone. Johnny's gonna stay here tonight, just to make sure he doesn't get sick again from last time he stayed a night in the lot. Soda's gone to the DX with Steve to check on something that I didn't hear well," he explained, then paused, "Uh, where's Julie?" he asked.

"She's in her room. She was getting sleepy. If she _is_ asleep, don't wake her up." I said.

"Oh." he whispered. I cocked an eyebrow, something I finally managed to get from Two-Bit and that Soda had mastered already.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked. He shrugged.

"I don't know, she seemed thoughtful today... She zoned out many times, even to the point that she forgot about our homework when we were in the lockers hallway. I've been meaning to talk to her about what she thinks." he explained.

"Now that you mention it, she did seem thoughtful at dinner time. I wouldn't worry, Ponyboy; it's probably the whole playing-piano-at-graduation thing." I said. He shrugged, but I knew he would still talk to her about it.

"Yeah, it's probably that. I've been thinking of it too." he replied.

"You shouldn't worry about that either, Pony. You're talented; you and Julie played well tonight. I want you two to stay here and practice, though. I'm not coming back on my decision; true, the Socs are staying quiet, but they're gonna do something, or at least they'll try. I don't want to take your freedom away, but I want you safe, Pony. Julie too. This is the best thing to do, for now." I said. I gave him a gentle pat on his shoulder to reassure him that I would keep him safe. He smiled.

"If you say so, Dar. I'm gonna be careful; I always am." he joked. I chuckled as I ruffled his hair and he scooted away and out the door before I could blink. If there was one thing Pony was proud of, it was his hair, and he hated when it was messed up.

* * *

The next day when I woke up, I noticed that Ponyboy and Julie were outside, talking while watching the sunrise. _Ponyboy and his sun, _I thought with a grin, _he's proud of that too, and he sure shows it to his girlfriend_. I felt a pang in my heart. Ponyboy has a _girlfriend_, and it's his first, and she's temporarily living with us. The kid sure is lucky.

"Hey, you lovebirds. What are you doing out here this early?" I asked with a grin. Ponyboy playfully wacked me on the bicep with the back of his hand while he blushed, and Julie giggled, blushing as well.

"We're just watching the sunrise." my little brother mumbled. I ruffled his hair, knowing full well what his reaction would be.

As expected, he grabbed for my comb, which I was holding in my hand in a teasing matter, and he combed his hair back. I noticed he hadn't put any hair grease; in fact, he hadn't put any hair grease for a couple of days.

"Hey Pone, you out of hair grease?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow. He shook his head, hiding a grin.

"Nah, I told him that he looked hotter without hair grease." Julie replied. I chuckled.

"That explains it." I joked. Julie giggled at my joke. Just then, Darry walked out.

"Well, guys, the sun rised, so bring your asses in the house." he said before stepping back inside. I followed him, followed myself by Ponyboy, holding Julie's hand as he let her step in the house in front of him. I inwardly smiled, noticing that despite my brother saying he was never interested in a girl before, he had good manners and he sure knew how to treat Julie like a princess.

Just then, I heard a sneeze, followed by the sound of someone blowing his/her nose in a tissue, and I caught of glimpse of Ponyboy and Julie in the bathroom. I stepped inside, too, concerned and ready to ask who it was, but then I saw Julie's face.

"Whoa, Julie, you look pale and your nose is red. You the one who sneezed?" I said. She nodded, letting out a small cough. Ponyboy put the back of his hand on Julie's forehead, and he quickly brought it back.

"She's burning up, Soda. Let's bring her in our room." he proposed. I nodded, wrapping my arm around her waist and with my other hand, I took her arm and draped it across my neck so I could help her walk in case she needed help. She didn't seem to, but I wasn't taking any chances. Darry quickly noticed and joined us.

"Are you alright, Julie?" he asked. She nodded, coughing again. He took her temperature with a thermometer.

"A fever of 103 degrees. You should rest today, Julie. If it gets better, I'll send you to school tomorrow or Thursday. If it gets worse, I'll bring you to the hospital." Darry said. She nodded again. I walked out of our room, followed by Ponyboy. He looked worried.

"Gee, Soda, she looked so sick. I wonder how she could have gotten that?" he said. I looked at him pointedly.

"Maybe from staying outside in the morning to watch the sunrise, or staying outside in the evening to watch the sunset." I replied, but soon, I regretted it, as I watched him as he swallowed nervously. He probably hadn't even considered that.

"Pony? What's a matter?" I asked.

"Oh, nothing." he said, and he walked outside, waiting for Steve and Two-Bit and possibly Johnny. I looked one last time at Julie's face, still pale, wondering if she would be better tomorrow. Then I joined my brother outside, not really bothering to talk to him even though it's what I wanted to do more than anything else, but I also knew that he wouldn't answer.

"Bye, Pone!" I said, waving at him, and he turned back to wave at me without adding a word. I watched as Steve's car drove away with my brother in the back seat. I stepped back inside the house and I got ready for work.

* * *

I wasn't concentrated at all today, and it showed. Teachers had to snap me out of my mind many times, and I almost got sent to the principal's office twice. I had track practice in like, thirty minutes and I wondered if I should ditch. I was worried for Julie ever since I saw her face this morning. She had looked so sick I almost got sick myself.

I was thinking about what Soda told me right before I left for school. _Maybe from staying outside in the morning to watch the sunrise, or staying outside in the evening to watch the sunset._ That was my fault I and know it. Of course I was so proud, I had to show her the sunsets and sunrises when she was up early, that I didn't really consider that she might catch a cold from going outside every morning and evening.

I was so lost in thoughts that I didn't notice that the bell just rang.

"Ponyboy?" the teacher asked, curious as to why I was still sitting in his class while everyone was gathering their material and leaving.

"It's nothing, sir. Sorry." I mumbled as I got up and gathered my stuff too. As I walked past the teacher's desk, he cleared his throat and I turned around, looking at him.

"Don't forget about tomorrow, Ponyboy. You have an exam to do." he explained, making me remember. I sighed as I nodded, and I told to have a good day. I walked to my locker and shoved my stuff inside, slamming it shut after, then almost ran to my PE class since I was almost late.

I barely had time to change when the bell rang, and I was a blur on the field. I had changed in record time!

"Geez, Curtis, keep your speed for the track meets!" joked Adam, one of my track buddies. I playfully shoved him, and he stumbled and almost fell on the ground. In a second he regained his balance and trapped me in a headlock before I could even blink.

"You should listen to your own advice, Adam." I grumbled, and he chuckled as he ruffled my hair. No one and I mean no one could touch my hair except Soda, and even HE was limited. I ruffled his hair back since I know that he was just like me, and he scooted out of the way.

Coach called us to the start line and told us to stretch before talking to us. When we had stretched for about five to ten minutes, we gathered around him.

"Listen up, boys. Next week is our first outside meets. I want you to be in top-shape! You hear me?!" he shouted as us, and we raised our fists in the air and shouted "Yeah!" as one. Then he waved us off to the start line and took his stopwatch. He gave us the signal and soon, our pounding feet echoed on the red track ring. As usual, I was leading the group.

We ran for fifteen minutes and by then, I was panting like a dog. I noticed that my teammates were just as tired as I was.

Coach sent us to the locker room to change, well, everyone except me. "Curtis!" he called, "C'mere for a minute or two!" I walked with him toward his office. He closed the door behind me and sat behind his desk, waving me to the chair in front of him. Slowly, I sat, staring at him.

"I'm expecting the best of you, Curtis. You're the youngest runner in our team, and even though I usually don't show favoritism, you're the best and fastest runner." He gave me a pat on the shoulder. "Good job. Now go on and change." I nodded and left his office, and to be honest, I was barely able to hide a grin.

"Hey, Curtis! What'd Coach want with you?" asked Jake, another of my track buddies. I shrugged.

"He was just telling me that he expected the best of me. Y'know, the usual crap." I answered. He smirked.

"Well, hell, man, you're the fastest in the team! No wonder he's pushing you so hard." he replied. Now I know I couldn't hide my grin. My mood couldn't be spoiled now.

* * *

I was walking home from school, lost in thoughts as usual. It was eerily silent, but that didn't last long when I heard an engine of a car slowing next to me.

"Hey, Grease! Heard you're the fastest runner in school! Well out-run this!" shouted a Soc, and before I could reply, he swerved, heading straight for me. I let out a squeak of fright which kinda embarrassed me, but it wasn't time to feel embarrassed. I stepped aside just in time, but I still managed to get scratched on my left thigh. I sucked in my breath, not wanting to give them the satisfaction of hearing me cry out, but the wound stung, and it was annoyingly hurting, even though it had only happened a second ago.

Before I could turn, someone grabbed me on the arms and spun me, and I was met with a punch in the face. I fell on the ground on my left side, and this time I cried out. I heard them laugh and they picked me up again, but before they could punch me, I heard two voices. They could only be Two-Bit and Steve.

"Hey! Leave the kid alone and pick on someone your own size!" the voice said, and I could in fact recognize Dallas.

"Let him go!" the other voice was surprisingly Johnny, but at the same time, it didn't surprise me that he was hanging out with Dally.

Before I could process anything else, I was shoved on the fence next to me, face first on the thin metal squares. I grunted. God, it hurt.

I couldn't see anything, but I could hear everything. Dallas was beating up a Soc, while Johnny was beating up the smallest, who was still taller and stronger than him, but he seemed to hold his own very well.

I wasn't so lucky, though.

I had three Socs around me, and two of them kept me pinned to the fence, which was starting to hurt my face a lot. The leader of them, just like last time, was Bob Sheldon. I heard the sound of a blade shooting out of its case, and I froze. I felt the cool metal on my back, but Bob wasn't doing anything. He was just threatening to use it, which didn't make me feel better, as he was travelling it on my skin in my back. I shuddered, holding tears. I was terrified.

But before he could stab or cut me, someone tackled him, and I realized that it was Dallas.

I started struggling, wanting to help Johnny, but the Socs had a tight hold on my arms, and the result of my struggle was me getting pinned even more against the fence.

I heard a cry, and Johnny was out. The other Soc had bruises for sure, but he just won, and that didn't really make me feel better. It was now four against one since I couldn't move. Dally was on his own.

The other Soc walked toward us, and before I could struggle again, he punched me square on the left side. He knew exactly where to hit. I yelped and a couple of tears flowed down my face. He kicked me on the left thigh and I slumped to the floor, the other two Socs having released me. I was now pinned on the ground even though there weren't any Socs on me, because I know I couldn't walk with my side and thigh hurting like that. The Socs left, and I noticed that Dallas was walking toward me. He knelt next to me and took my chin in his hand, checking my face.

"You okay, kid?" he asked, concerned, which was a rarity when it came to Dallas Winston, but right now, I couldn't complain about it. I nodded, but when he helped me up, I cried out and fell on the ground again. He lifted my shirt and looked at my left side, which was a violent blue-purple shade from the punch. I probably had a broken rib or two.

"Christ, kid, you busted your ribs. There somethin' else you ain't telling me?" he said, a hint of annoyance in his tone. I pointed at my left thigh and mumbled, "Hurts". He got up, leaving me on the ground, and he said, "I'm coming back in a sec, kid. Don't move." I nodded, but I know he couldn't see me since he was already running somewhere, and I noticed he was heading toward the DX.

A couple of minutes later he came back and another minute after, I heard a truck stop right next to us.

In a flash, Sodapop and Steve were by my side, Sodapop checking me. He picked me up and I moaned. "Sorry, baby." he whispered, and I mumbled, "Ts'okay". He jumped in the trunk of the truck, holding me carefully, and he sat, lying my head in his lap. He told Steve to drive us home and he told Dally to hop in next to us with Johnny. Right before I closed my eyes, he opened his and smiled at me as if saying "It's okay, we're gonna be fine", and I managed to smile back before darkness surrounded me.

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**Figured ya'll needed a couple of drama, uh? ;)**

**3 083 words!**


	13. Chapter 12: Recovery and Socy Apologies

**Hey peeps! I finally updated after these couple of days! Happy? I am! :P**

**This chapter will be of Ponyboy's POV completely. Enjoy, and R & R!**

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When I came to, I was on the couch, and almost the entire gang was looking at me. Only Johnny, Dally and Julie weren't there.

"Ponyboy? Can you hear me?" asked Sodapop, who was holding my hand. I squeezed his hand since I didn't want to nod; my head was constantly throbbing. At least I was using my head, like Darry told me to. I'm sure he would be proud if he could read my thoughts right now.

"Pone, you alright?" asked Two-Bit. I know it was a stupid question, and Two-Bit knew too, but he asked it anyway. I stared at him and mouthed "no". He nodded. Sodapop stroked my hair, and for once I let him do it. My hair was probably messed up anyway, so what would it change?

Suddenly I felt pain in my left side, and I moaned. I looked out of the corner of my eye and I noticed that Darry was holding an ice pack against my side. As I looked down, I also noticed that my left pant leg was lifted, and my thigh was bandaged.

"D-Darry?" I said, not really remembering what happened.

"Shush, Ponyboy, you're fine." he replied.

"What happened...?" I asked. He sighed.

"Some Socs beat you up. Don't you remember, baby?" said Sodapop.

At first I had no clue what he was talking about, but then it hit me. I was walking home from school after practice and suddenly the Socs tried to slam into me with their car, and I barely avoided them, but I got scratched anyway and then they beat me up. They pinned me against the fence, and then I heard voices and I thought they were Steve and Two-Bit but they were Dallas and Johnny, and Dallas protected me and then Johnny got beat up and passed out and...

"Johnny?" I asked, fearful.

"He's in Darry's room with Dallas. They're both resting, even though Dally was a little eager to get up and pound them ape faces again..." answered Sodapop. I managed to giggle; a small, faint giggle, but I was feeling better. Then I coughed, and I clutched at my left side.

"Sshhh, easy Ponyboy." whispered Soda, stroking my hair while Darry put more pressure on my side. I moaned again.

"Does it still hurt, Pony?" asked Darry. Slowly, I nodded, but he probably read the pain in my face. He smiled and then gave me two pain pills and a glass of water. Sodapop helped me sit up, and I hissed as my left side throbbed a little.

I popped the pills in my mouth and then I drank the water, careful of not drinking too much. Last thing I wanted was to get sick too.

Suddenly, I felt very tired. I could barely keep my eyes opened.

"D-Darry...?" I said, barely above a whisper.

"Sshhh, don't fight it, Ponyboy. Go to sleep, you'll feel better after that, trust me." he replied. They were the last words I heard before blackness surrounded me again.

* * *

When I awoke, I was on the couch again, and I had a thick layer of sheets on me. I felt incredibly hot, so I took off half of them, and I felt just fine after. I was alone in the living room, but I heard voice in the kitchen, so slowly I got up, ignoring the pain in my left side. I couldn't let it bother me all the time.

I half-walked, half-limped to the kitchen, where all the gang was, even Johnny and Dally. When Johnny saw me, he cried out in happiness.

"Pony! I'm glad you're okay." he said, smiling at me, and I smiled back.

"I could say the same thing." I said, and he chuckled.

"Yeah, I guess them Socs got the both of us pretty good." he admitted, which was rare for a Greaser to do so, since we had our pride when it came to fighting against the Socs.

"Yeah well next time, we'll get 'em good." grumbled Dally, and I knew he was being serious about it.

"Heck, even their own mamas won't recognize them!" piped Two-Bit, and I giggled.

"They have a face only a mother could love, and I doubt they'll love their faces after what we're gonna do to them..." I said, and the whole gang laughed. Two-Bit ruffled my hair.

"Two-Bit, don't make it worse!" I said, but I was grinning. Two-Bit pointed at Darry.

"I TOLD you my incredible sense of humor was rubbing on the kid, Superman!" joked Two-Bit, and I giggled. It was good to have fun like that with the gang. Darry cracked one of his rare grins and joked with us.

Just then, something snapped in me. I hadn't heard of Julie since this morning, and I was wondering if she was awake, or still sleeping, or still sick. I walked to her room much to the concern of the gang and knocked on the door. I waited for a few seconds then slowly, I opened the door. Julie was yawning as she opened her eyes to look at me. She smiled and invited me to sit with her, so I half-walked, half-limped to her bed and I sat next to her. She frowned.

"Ponyboy, why are you limping?" she asked me, a look of concern in her eyes.

"The Socs found it cool to jump me after school." I answered bitterly. She gasped.

"Oh, those damn Socs! Are you alright?" she asked. I nodded.

"Yeah, well, they tried running me down with their car and I got scratched on the left thigh, and then they threw me on the ground and kicked my left side and pinned me to the fence, so I'm pretty sore on my left side, but apart from that, I'm fine." I explained. "What about you? You feelin' better from that cold?"

"Yeah, although, my head throbs a little." she answered. "At least I had time to do our English essay." I mentally face-palmed myself.

"Shit, I completely forgot about that!" I exclaimed, and she giggled.

"Don't worry; I can help you with it." she proposed, which was pretty sweet of her. I smiled.

"Thanks, I think I would appreciate." I replied, and she smiled back.

"Can you help me get up? I don't like asking, but…" she started, but I cut her off.

"Of course I can." I said, and she smiled her thanks as I grabbed her hand and hoisted her to her feet. She giggled as she landed in my arms, and I took the opportunity to hug her. She snuggled against my chest, smiling sweetly, and I couldn't help but smile back as I playfully nuzzled her hair with the tip of my nose.

After a couple of minutes, we reluctantly let go of our embrace, but I grabbed her hand and walked her to the kitchen where Two-Bit and Steve were with my brothers. Dally and Johnny were probably gone to Buck's or something, so I shrugged their absence off and settled down with Julie. Two-Bit beamed at her.

"Heeeyyyy, Juliee, you're back from the dead!" he said, and she glared at him, but she was grinning at the same time.

"I was never dead in the first place, Two-Bit." she said.

"Coulda fooled me." mumbled Two-Bit, and she playfully punched him on the arm. He managed to scoot away but she was fast; she stepped aside and he bumped straight into her. She punched him in the stomach and he doubled over. It wasn't a big punch, but it still looked painful by the way Two-Bit was clutching his stomach.

"Man, Julie, how'd you learn to punch like that?" he groaned, and she stood in front of him, looking down at him.

"Well, you deserved it." she shrugged.

"Man up, Two-Bit." Darry muttered before sipping his coffee. How he could drink that disgusting brown liquid was beyond me.

"Yeah, man, I can't believe you let yourself get punched by a girl! And you call that painful?" Steve scoffed. "What 'till I punch you; it'll be much worse!"

"Shut up, Steve. Julie is probably stronger than you; you punch like a girl." I muttered, but of course he heard me. I swear, that guy has supersonic hearing when it comes to insults thrown at him. He took a step toward me.

"What'd you say you little shit?" he muttered, and I looked straight at him. Probably not smart, considering he was fuming, but I wasn't afraid. I knew Steve wouldn't try to hurt me in front of Soda or Darry.

"I said; you punch like a girl."

"Wanna test that theory, pal?" he said, sarcastically of course since I was nowhere near his "pal." Thankfully, not that I was afraid; this is where Darry piped in.

"Steve, lay off. Ponyboy, shut up." he muttered, glaring at the both of us. Steve backed away but not before glaring at me. I glared right back. _Two can play at that game, y'know_, I thought. Luckily, Soda was here; he cleared the tension quickly.

"Pony, why don't you go outside with Julie and sit on the porch, eh? Or you can stay outside, and I'll head to the DX with Steve. How's that sound?" he asked nervously. I shrugged.

"Fine."

Soda put his hand on Steve's shoulder and guided his friend outside. Two-Bit, Darry, Julie and I stayed silent until Julie broke the uncomfortable silence.

"Is he always like that toward you, Ponyboy?" she asked.

"Well, sometimes he tells me to shut my trap, or he calls me a smart-ass or a tag-along annoying brat, but he never actually threatened to hurt me…" I whispered the last words.

"Aw, hell, Pone, you know Steve-o won't hurt you willingly. He was just kidding."

"Oh yeah, he _so_ sounded like he was kidding." I mumbled. Darry sighed.

"He won't get near you if his intentions are to hurt you, Ponyboy. It's our house here and if he kicks your butt, I'll personally kick his, and I won't do him any favors." he reassured me.

"Thanks, Darry." I said. He nodded.

I then took Julie's hand and walked outside with her. We sat next to each other on the front porch, looking at the stars in the sky. Julie showed me a couple of constellations she knew and in return, I showed her the ones that I knew. It was peaceful outside.

However, our peace didn't last long; we heard the engine of a Mustang stop, and two Socs hopped off. Julie froze and I grabbed her hand, ready to make a break for it as the Socs walked straight toward us, but they stopped in front of the stairs. We had to look up in order to see their faces.

"Don't worry, Greasers, we're not here to beat you up." the bigger one said, whose name was Randy from what I knew about school.

"That's new." I muttered. The other Soc glared at me.

"Watch it, kid. He's telling the truth right now, but unless you don't shut that smart trap o' yours, I won't be so truthful." he answered, so I complied. Don't get me wrong; I wasn't scared. I just didn't want more trouble and I sure as hell didn't want them to hurt Julie.

"We're here under a flag of truce." Randy said. This time, Julie was the one to speak.

"It's kinda hard to believe, what with since what happened at the rumble and afterward."

"You're one to talk; you're not even from here."

"So what if I am? I still chose to hang out with Greasers over Socs, 'cause I learn many things from them." she replied coolly. I wondered if Randy would be smart enough not to reply, but the other Soc did.

"Learned what? How to steel from the thrift shop?"

"Idiot," she muttered. "I learned how to appreciate the little things in life. Money isn't everything, you know. You won't find happiness out of money. You'll find it out of the possessions that you own, and out of the trust that you have with the gang. Has any one of your friends done any favor for you? 'Cause Greasers stick together for everything. I don't think Socs stick together besides when a rumble is on. Am I right?"

I stared at her wordlessly. What she said hit me head on. _Greasers stick together for everything. Money isn't everything; you won't find happiness out of it, only with the things you own and the trust you have in your gang._ She was right. The other Soc glared at the both of us, but Randy seemed struck by her words as well.

"Look, we didn't mean for all the shit to happen. Bob, he…he's the leader of our gang. We have to follow him, or else he will beat us up, and he's the strongest and toughest of the gang. We don't want him on our bad side. But…I realized that it isn't right to beat a Greaser up just because, well, he's a Greaser. I realized that you guys are human, like us. I came here on my own free will, not by force. I came here to tell you that, just like you, I'm tired of all that shit. I won't be part of his gang anymore." he explained.

"Congrats," I answered coolly. "Took you long enough to realize it." Then, I softened my voice. "We're tired too. You get all the breaks. You have money, and you're not hated by the rest of the population, and you hurt us just because we're poor and we're not like you guys." This time, he snapped.

"You think that it's easy for us? Some of us barely see our parents just because they're rich and travel a lot for work, while others' parents push them higher than their limit. You wonder why many Socs are in the upper classes? It's because our parents practically force us to score an A on an exam. And they spoil us. But I've seen right through their games. They let us have everything we want, hoping that we'll do as we're told.

"Some of you Greasers have it made. Maybe some of your parents are good people, and they're gone. But the rest of you, whose parents don't care or abandoned them, well, they're not forced to do anything. They're free. Sometimes I wish I would be a Greaser just to escape my parents." he explained. I snapped.

"You call us "free"?! My parents were the best in the East side, and they died, and now we've constantly got the State on our backs for until I'm eighteen, which is four years from now! Greasers get arrested for some things Socs do! You're respected; we're blamed, hated, unwanted, name 'em! And for your information, I get pushed higher than my limit too! And then you wonder why Greasers are in the lower classes? We're not dumb, but we sure as hell aren't free like you think!" I softened my voice again.

"Sometimes you need to get pushed over your limit. By doing that to you, Randy, your parents aren't being mean or demanding. They know what you're capable of, and they make sure that you can do it. I skipped a grade 'cause I'm smart, and I work my ass off day in and day out for those grades. I still get pushed 'cause my brothers know that I can score an A on my exams. I'm the best track runner for a reason; I get pushed because my friends know that I can lead my teammates and win." I replied. He lowered his head.

"I just came here to tell you that I'm not on Bob's side anymore. I won't be your best friend but I won't be your enemy, is all." he mumbled. I motioned for him to look at me, and when he did, I nodded.

"We understand. Thanks." I said. He smiled.

Our little "truce" meeting was soon interrupted by Soda and Steve. With a gulp, I realized that they were coming home from the DX and expected the Socs to jump us.

"Hey! You leave my brother and his girlfriend alone, you damn Socs!" yelled Sodapop. Randy was about to stop him but I got up and stood between the too, looking straight at Sodapop, separating my furious brother from Randy.

"Ponyboy, what the hell are you doing?!" he hissed at me.

"Those Socs came to apologize. They won't be on Bob's side anymore. They won't hurt us anymore. Just like us, they're tired of fighting." I explained. Steve snapped.

"And you believe them?! You're more stupid than I thought you were!" Julie got up at that and glared at him.

"I believe them, too, Steve. If you don't shut up and if you don't change your attitude with Ponyboy, my punch will be far more painful than when I punched Two-Bit, and trust me, it won't be the only one you'll get, and I know where to hit." she hissed. I resisted the urge to laugh, but I was too busy getting Sodapop to calm down. I looked at him with pleading eyes.

"Soda, you gotta trust me. You always did, so why not now?" I said. He hesitated, but finally he nodded.

"Fine, but I don't want to see their faces here again." he spat. I nodded and turned at Randy. He nodded, and he walked away, followed by the other Soc. Soon, you could hear the engine of a Mustang as Randy drove it away and to his own home.

Sodapop put his hand on my shoulder and guided me in the house. Since Julie was mad at Steve and he was mad at the both of us for trusting Socs, he stayed outside and smoked. Julie followed me.

I looked at her and I knew what she was thinking. We both knew why Randy apologized.

'Cause Socs aren't all the same. There's good everywhere in the world.

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**3 175 words *o***


	14. Author's Note

**Hey guys!**

***BEFORE YOU PRESS THE PANIC BUTTON* (which you won't need to do, by the way)**

**I know that an Author's note that uses a complete chapter in the story is never a good sign, BUT! But, I actually have some good news! (and some bad news that aren't so bad)**

**The good news are that school is over for me (FINALLY!), so I'll be able to update faster! :) And yes, I'm sorry that I haven't updated yet, but that's part of the not-so-bad news!**

**The not-so-bad news are that to be quite honest, I don't think this story is getting anywhere.**

**DON'T PRESS THE PANIC BUTTON YET!**

**I will not delete this story, but I will rewrite it, so it might take a while before I actually add chapters to this story since I'll be completely modifying it!**

**So, the not-so-bad news are that you will have to wait for a couple of days before getting the next chapters to this story since I'll be rewriting it! Not bad, uh?**

**The events will mainly be the same, but will happen a little differently.**

**Until then, I hope you liked the story and that you will keep reading when it's all modified and perfect! :)**

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**OH AND ANOTHER THING!**

**I will be a little stricter with reviews. I will ask 3 reviews of you per chapter, and when I mean 3 reviews, I mean from 3 different readers! Of course, readers who really like the story can review more than once, but not twice per chapter!**

**It's all that I ask of you! Apart from the lack of reviews, you guys were great and I hope you will read!**

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**OH AND YET ANOTHER THING!**

**I'm changing my pen name to Shattered Aura. Don't ask why, it just feels better than OoxxJuliexxoO. And I've had a similar pen name on another fanfiction site before discovering , which I have to agree is the perfect fanfiction site!**

**-Shattered Aura**


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